A Deeper Dive Into Botox and Dysport
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What to do if Botox or Dysport starts losing its effectiveness?
If one product initially works well and over a period of time the results become less effective, we generally suggest you to try a higher dose--or try the alternate product in case you may have developed a tolerance to the product. Most frequently, as everyone gets a bit older, the wrinkles get worse and a higher dose is usually necessary as your wrinkle muscle size increases to obtain the same clinical effect. If your muscle becomes twice as large, you may need twice as much Botox or Dysport to maintain the biological concentration you need to be effective.
Botox Units versus Dysport Units
Most everyone is initially confused between understanding the conversion between Botox Units and Dysport Units.
First, the amount of liquid in a syringe means nothing because the amount of saline--or water--varies tremendously between different injectors, ranging from 0.5 cc to 4.0 cc, by my personal observation. Each brand has their recommended dilution (Botox = 2.5 cc / 50 U) based upon their initial clinical trials, but I personally add 0.625 cc to a 50 Unit (U) bottle of Botox because I prefer a more concentrated product to minimize the spread of Botox to areas I don’t want treated. Conversely, I need to be more precise in injecting the area I do want treated because I will not have the same amount of diffusion as someone who uses more carrier water (saline).
The ultimate key to evaluating the effectiveness of Botox or Dysport is the Units (U) injected, which is the amount of active ingredient there is in your syringe. More Units = More Effectiveness = More Cost.
Typically, we use 50 U of Botox in most patients and 150 Units of Dysport. But keep in mind that the 150 U of Dysport is NOT 3X more effective than 50 U of Botox. I approximate that 1.0 U of Botox = 3.0 U of Dysport, so 50 U of Botox is about equal to 150 U of Dysport in effectiveness.
An easy way to think about it is that 12 inches = 1.0 foot, which is exactly the same measurement, just different units...just as 50 U of Botox = 150 U of Dysport.