A recent study conducted by the research team at Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Calgary injected Botox(r) into the limbs of rabbits and discovered atrophy in surrounding areas and muscles where the rabbits were not injected the results insinuated that Botox(r) may spread to surrounding muscles causing atrophy or paralysis in other parts of the body.
Dr. Steven Dayan provided Skin, Inc. Magazine exclusive commentary on the study stating that:
“First of all, they gave the Botox to rabbits. Rabbits are very different than humans. Secondly, they gave very high doses of Botox and gave it monthly for six months. This would be the equivalent of giving 240 units of Botox to someone every month for six months! That is very unrealistic. The normal dose of Botox given cosmetically is around 30 units. The 240 units used in the study are seven times the normal cosmetic dose.”
Dr. Dayan continued to question,
“Their conclusion that surrounding muscles were affected with long-term weakness is also a poorly supported statement. They tested nearby muscle groups. When giving high doses of Botox, who is to say that some of the Botox didn’t diffuse over to the nearby muscles by overwhelming natural transport mechanisms? Why didn’t they look at muscle groups in the forelimbs or shoulders if they wanted to test distal spread? Perhaps the opposite hind limb in rabbits is naturally underutilized when one hind limb is effected? They didn’t do biochemistry studies to confirm if Botox was taken up in those nearby muscle groups.”
Dr. Dayan firmly believes that Botox is still safe and a helpful product for patients who choose to use it. He writes,
“Additionally, if Botox long-term leads to muscle atrophy and fatty infiltration, that would be welcomed by many of my patients, because that could mean that Botox may have long-lasting effects. But in all likelihood, the muscle activity would return once the Botox was stopped. The authors didn’t test this though. Botox has been used clinically for 25 years in both high and low doses with an unparalleled safety record and, when used as indicated for cosmetic use, the safety record is outstanding. Bottom line: Botox is still one of the safest and most reliable cosmetic treatments available.”
