Originally Posted by
jbmd1111
I beg to differ. While Botox is more well know in the popular press for its cosmetic applications, it started out as and still is frequently used for therapeutic purposes (some of which are quite debilitating). Never the less, the furor about Botox killing people is a tempest in a teapot. Normal therapeutic doses of Botox have a very localized effect. General effects usually result from EXTREME overdosing.
For example, most cosmetic applications will use between 30 and 100 Units. Therapeutic doses (for severe chronic muscle spasm etc...) can approach 1000 Units. Some children with CP can end up getting 2 or 3 thousand units to help relieve the chronic flexor spasm they must endure.
I believe the popularly circulated story of death following cosmetic Botox actually occurred as a result of someone obtaining and illegally importing "research grade" Botox at a strength 1000 times the normal cosmetic preparation. Either he did not realize this and/or made a mistake in his math, overdosing himself and his patients with 100-1000 times the normal dose.
Despite what the press may have us believe, there is a wide margin of error when it comes to cosmetic (and to a lesser extent) therapeutic Botox.
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