4 ms·

Fillers provide facial volume, whereas Botox paralyses muscles. Botox can also be used to treat things like excessive sweating or chronic pain, but I’m unsure o

by ntlk 5y ago

Fillers provide facial volume, whereas Botox paralyses muscles. Botox can also be used to treat things like excessive sweating or chronic pain, but I’m unsure of the mechanism.

dijit 5y ago
it basically paralyzes the sweat glands or pain receptors. Imagine you have a liquid which is toxic enough to kill nerves, muscles and so on in an incredibly localised way, but the body does not try to heal the damage afterwards. That's essentially what botox is.
gumby 5y ago
In fact Botox was originally approved for hyperhydrosis as that was a much easier approval path. It was then used off label* for many years before Allergan sought approval for cosmetic use. In the U.S., licensed M.D.* can prescribe any approved drug for any reason (note this doesn’t mean they’d be immune for a malpractice suit if it didn’t work out, nor that someone might not taken a look if they wrote a lot of opiate prescriptions. And insurance companies may decline to pay). However the drug companies can’t advertise for any use, or any consequences, that they haven’t sought approval for and demonstrated in the lab. Allergan’s sales people (and those of many other companies) would “just visit” and just happen to drop off a scientific paper that looked at research use for other indications…papers that Allergan might have funded. There’s been some crackdown on these practices but of course they still go on. * The “label” is the package insert with the formula, mechanism of action, side effects etc. It’s not really aimed at the consumer. Your clinical trials are aimed at writing that label, and everything in it is supposed to be supported by your submitted studies. * M.D.s only, not other prescribing practitioners like dentists, podiatrists or PAs.
- refurb 5y ago
  Yup. Botox has to be one of the most amazing examples of expanded use ever. Original approval was in 1989 and now it has 9 approved indications and many more unapproved ones. $3.5B in global sales and likely no competition as who has the setup to make something that toxic? Plus with such an entrenched product people will probably ask foe the branded version.
javier2 5y ago
Botox is also used to treat severe cases of migraine patients, where they knock out nerves along the migraine pathways. The patients will still have incidents, just with much less pain as the nerves in the pathway are paralyzed.

by ntlk 5y ago

Fillers provide facial volume, whereas Botox paralyses muscles. Botox can also be used to treat things like excessive sweating or chronic pain, but I’m unsure of the mechanism.

dijit 5y ago

it basically paralyzes the sweat glands or pain receptors. Imagine you have a liquid which is toxic enough to kill nerves, muscles and so on in an incredibly localised way, but the body does not try to heal the damage afterwards. That's essentially what botox is.

gumby 5y ago

In fact Botox was originally approved for hyperhydrosis as that was a much easier approval path. It was then used off label* for many years before Allergan sought approval for cosmetic use. In the U.S., licensed M.D.* can prescribe any approved drug for any reason (note this doesn’t mean they’d be immune for a malpractice suit if it didn’t work out, nor that someone might not taken a look if they wrote a lot of opiate prescriptions. And insurance companies may decline to pay). However the drug companies can’t advertise for any use, or any consequences, that they haven’t sought approval for and demonstrated in the lab. Allergan’s sales people (and those of many other companies) would “just visit” and just happen to drop off a scientific paper that looked at research use for other indications…papers that Allergan might have funded. There’s been some crackdown on these practices but of course they still go on. * The “label” is the package insert with the formula, mechanism of action, side effects etc. It’s not really aimed at the consumer. Your clinical trials are aimed at writing that label, and everything in it is supposed to be supported by your submitted studies. * M.D.s only, not other prescribing practitioners like dentists, podiatrists or PAs.

refurb 5y ago
Yup. Botox has to be one of the most amazing examples of expanded use ever. Original approval was in 1989 and now it has 9 approved indications and many more unapproved ones. $3.5B in global sales and likely no competition as who has the setup to make something that toxic? Plus with such an entrenched product people will probably ask foe the branded version.

javier2 5y ago

Botox is also used to treat severe cases of migraine patients, where they knock out nerves along the migraine pathways. The patients will still have incidents, just with much less pain as the nerves in the pathway are paralyzed.