Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.
Botox smooths out wrinkles, reduces muscle volume
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Choi Eun-jin, the dermatologist at You&I Clinic Gwanggyo/ Courtesy of You&I Clinic
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Botox, which is cosmetically used to remove wrinkles by temporarily paralyzing muscles, is one of the most popular non-surgical cosmetic treatments in Korea.
Widely known as an anti-aging treatment for decades, botox injections block nerve transmissions in the body to smooth out wrinkles and reduce muscle volume.
Although it is a drug made from neurotoxin, it is proven to be therapeutic in treating certain muscular disorders.
“Botox is one of the most received cosmetic treatments in Korea. It's safe as long as the drug is officially administered and the treatment is operated by a certified dermatologist or a plastic surgeon,” said Choi Eun-jin, a dermatologist.
The most common treatment areas for botox are around the eyes, forehead, and jaw, according to her.
“Apart from the face area, a growing number of patients are getting botox in their shoulders, calves and armpits,” she said. “Besides the reduction of wrinkles, botox is used to reduce the size of muscle volume.”
According to Choi, a few injections of botox help patients to get rid of bulky-looking shoulders and calves, making the neck and legs look slimmer.
“Botox effectively keeps the muscle from moving, which also prevents it from newly forming,” she said.
She explained that the toxin injected into one's body and face is made up of the same substance, but its amount may vary according to a patient's condition and muscle volume.
Choi explained that botox tends to stay where it is injected without traveling to other sites in the body. It also takes a few days to see the muscle contract.
“One can typically witness the effect of botox after two or three weeks. And the effect lasts for four to six months,” Choi said.
Despite the positive applications of bototx, it can have small side effects that include bruising and pain at injection site.
“The thing about botox is that the toxin melts away after a few months. The side effect disappears with it,” she said. “The toxin spreading to other parts of the body, vision problems, and muscle weakness occur in extremely rare instances.”
When asked about whether repeated injections of botox can be ineffective due to immune response, she conceded it.
“Repeated injection of botox can trigger an immune response, which might lead to less responsiveness to the treatment,” Choi said. “I inform my patients about the small risk of antibody formation.”
As the recent cosmetic trend is pursuing natural beauty and health, she advised her patients to understand how the treatment can affect one's health over time.