Skin pliability and elasticity improved after treatment with onabotulinum toxin (Botox) for mild facial wrinkles and the effect lasted for up to four months, according to a study from researchers at the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto.  The study is published in the journal JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.

The team explain that human skin has three biomechanical features, strength, pliability (the ability to stretch) and elasticity (the ability to recoil). As people age, these properties change and the loss of skin elasticity appears to be the most prominent. Physicians use a variety of methods to reverse the signs of aging and onabotulinum toxin A injections are among them.  The researchers sought to further understand the effect of onabotulinum toxin A on the skin by studying its effect on 43 women treated at a private cosmetic surgery clinic for mild wrinkles of the forehead and around the eyes.

The data findings showed that Botox injections in the facial skin resulted in increased pliability and elastic recoil. These biomechanical changes mimic those of more youthful skin. The mechanism for this skin change is unclear but the effect of the Botox injections is similar to a radiofrequency skin tightening procedure. However, by four months these improvements returned to how the skin was before treatment.

The researchers state that the changes occurring in patients’ skin appear to be the opposite of those associated with the aging process and UV radiation exposure and inflammation. The results also suggests that the duration of effect of these changes mimics the duration of effect of the medication.

The team conclude that future studies are required to determine and quantify the histologic changes that are occurring.

Source:  The JAMA Network