What’s the Difference Between Botox and Juvéderm?
What’s the Difference Between Botox and Juvéderm?
As you age, your skin starts to lose collagen and elastin, the two proteins naturally found in your skin. Without these proteins, your skin starts sagging and develops fine lines and wrinkles. External factors, such as environmental toxins, sun exposure, and dehydration, can also speed up your skin’s aging process and worsen wrinkles.1
While lifestyle changes may improve the appearance of fine lines on your skin to some extent, they play little or no role in treating deep wrinkles or prominent lines. This is where cosmetic treatments such as Botox and Juvéderm come in.
What Is Botox?
Botox is a neurologic toxin that contains botulinum toxin A. It comes as an injectable formulation that works by relaxing muscles on your skin. Doing so limits the movement of facial muscles, making your skin appear smoother and wrinkle-free.3
Common Uses
Botox treats both fine lines and wrinkles. It is most commonly used to treat vertical lines between your eyebrows, wrinkles around your eyes (crow’s feet), and wrinkles on your forehead.4
Cost
The cost of Botox injection depends on the number of units or injections needed in each sitting.
Each unit charges anywhere between $10 to $20. Your total treatment cost depends on the number of units used in each session. For example, if you get 20 units of Botox for treating forehead lines, the estimated cost would be between $200 and $400.
According to The American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the average cost of Botox injections is $408.5
Duration of the Procedure
The duration of the entire procedure depends on the area of the skin treated. For instance, the process takes an average of 15 minutes to treat a small area.6
Number of Treatments
The deeper the wrinkles on your face and the larger the area of skin being treated, the more Botox units you will need in each session.
How Long It Lasts
Since Botox provides a temporary fix, it roughly lasts around four to five months.7
Side Effects
When used safely by a medical aesthetician, Botox doesn’t cause any serious side effects. Common and temporary side effects are pain, rash, and discomfort at the site of injection.
Other side effects that may occur in some people include:
- Headaches;
- Droopy skin;
- Dry mouth;
- Neck and back pain;
- Muscle stiffness, or;
- Paralysis.8
What Is Juvéderm?
Juvéderm is the most popular cosmetic treatment for wrinkles. Commonly known as fillers, Juvéderm formulation contains a natural substance called hyaluronic acid that essentially “fills” up the wrinkles in your skin and makes it plump and smooth.
In 2016 alone, the global market for fillers increased by 16 percent and continues to increase in the U.S. by up to 25 percent.9
Common Uses
Almost all the fillers used to plump up lips and soften lip lines contain hyaluronic acid. Juvéderm is also used to treat wrinkles and superficial lines around the mouth, nose, and lip area. If you have prominent laugh lines, your aesthetician will probably recommend Juvéderm to plump up those lines and smoothen the skin around that area.
Another common use of Juvéderm is to add volume to cheeks.10
Cost
Juvéderm injections cost higher than Botox since their effects last longer. While the total cost entirely depends upon the dose used and the area of skin being treated, each Juvéderm injection treatment can cost up to $652.11
Duration of the Procedure
Like Botox, Juvéderm treatment takes less than 15 minutes and provides instant results.12
Number of Treatments
Depending upon the formula used and area of skin treated, you will require repeat treatments every one and a half to two years, with a lesser dose requiring in subsequent treatments.13
How Long It Lasts
The results of Juvéderm treatment can last up to one year.14
Side Effects
Juvéderm is generally a safe treatment, but some side effects may occur. These include:
- Pain, itching, and discomfort at the injection site;
- Bruising;
- Temporary swelling, especially when used on lips;
- Tenderness;
- Tiny bump formation, and;
- Skin discoloration.15
Conclusion
Aging is inevitable, but wrinkles don’t have to be.
Over the last few years, aesthetic medicine has transformed cosmetic treatments entirely. Gone are the days when going under the knife was the only and the most expensive way to rid yourself of wrinkles and fine lines. With Botox and Juvéderm, your skin is only a couple of minutes away from being smooth, plump, and youthful.
1 National Center for Biotechnology Information, Skin anti-aging strategies 2 National Library of Medicine, Juvéderm: a hyaluronic acid dermal filler 3 National Center for Biotechnology Information, Botulinum toxin (Botox) A for reducing the appearance of facial wrinkles: a literature review of clinical use and pharmacological aspect 4 National Library of Medicine, Botox for the eyes and eyebrows 5 American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Botulinum Toxin: How much do botulinum toxin injections cost? 6 American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Botulinum Toxin: What are the steps of a botulinum toxin injections? 7 National Library of Medicine, Botulinum toxin: examining duration of effect in facial aesthetic applications 8 RxList, BOTOX 9 National Library of Medicine, Juvéderm: a hyaluronic acid dermal filler 10 National Library of Medicine, Practical use of Juvéderm: early experience 11 American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Dermal Fillers: How much do dermal fillers cost? 12 American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Dermal Fillers: What are the steps of a dermal fillers procedure? 13 National Center for Biotechnology Information, Duration of wrinkle correction following repeat treatment with Juvéderm hyaluronic acid fillers 14 National Library of Medicine, Safety and Effectiveness of Repeat Treatment With VYC-15L for Lip and Perioral Enhancement: Results From a Prospective Multicenter Study 15