SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) There was more than 3-million Botox procedures performed in the United States last year. Some were medical, more were cosmetic. In the future doctors predict some of that market will be split by a new drug called Dysport.
Janell Reynolds has been treated with Botox for five years. She sees the University of Utah’s Dr. Steven Mobley for help with Bell’s palsy. It’s a neuromuscular disorder caused by a virus. Dr. Mobley says “When she has certain facial movements for example, if she were to blink, she gets a twitch around her mouth.
But Reynolds will no longer be getting Botox treatments, instead she is being injected with Dysport, it acts just the same as Botox by relaxing muscles, but unlike Botox it only takes three or four days to take effect instead of seven. Dr. Mobley also says the studies show it lasts up to a month longer as well. The other benefit to Dysport is the cost. Typically it sells for fifteen to twenty percent less than Botox.
Dysport is made from the same Botulinum toxin type-A that Botox is created from but has less protein and is more diluted. Dr. Mobley says it is as safe as Botox with the same side effects. “The most common side effect, you simply get too much and then someone might have an over weakened side of their face but because these medications are designed to wear off they go away.”
Janell says she’s excited to try Dysport because it will allow her to skip a treatment in a year, cost her less money, and at the same time it will provide her with the ability to move her facial muscles more normally. “It helps a lot. My face moves better and sometimes I get headaches and the headaches go away with the Botox also.”
Dysport is also approved for cosmetic use. It became available in the United States in July but has been widely used in Europe for the past decade.
