Many people have Botox injections as a way to remove their facial wrinkles and look younger. Without those frown lines – or laugh lines – your face will look much smoother, contributing to a youthful look that can make you feel much more confident in your ability to get on in life. Mature people can take years off their looks and be sure to keep their jobs when they have a face free of wrinkles.

However, some Botox treatment has been botched, with the patients suffering things like bruising, an uneven looking face, misaligned eyebrows and even a frozen face that cannot demonstrate any kind of emotion, neither happiness or annoyance.  How does this happen?

It is mainly because they have had the treatment done by someone who is not trained to know where each facial muscle is and what it does. Such a person is likely to inject the Botox into the wrong muscle, or the wrong position on the muscle. They may inject too much Botox or not enough. They may try to save on the cost by using Botox that has gone past its use by date. Worse still, the solution used to mix it or the needles they use may not be sterile and cause infection.

While Botox injections are a very minor form of cosmetic treatment, they are still invasive because they puncture the skin. This tiny puncture can allow bacteria to invade unless the correct hygienic procedures are followed.  What are they?

• The skin should be swabbed with a sterile solution that will kill bacteria
• The needles should be sterilised properly

• The Botox should be kept refrigerated and mixed with a sterile solution
• The atmosphere should be clean and free of contaminants such as smoke or even people coughing.
• The person doing the procedure should wear a mask so their germ-laden breath doesn’t fall onto your face.
• They should use new gloves and have washed their hands in a sterile solution before doing the procedure.
• Ice should be used to reduce the swelling afterwards, but it too should be made using water that is sterile.
• Any cloth or gauze that is used should have been washed and sterilised.

This is unlikely to be the case at a Botox party or gym; it might not even be done at a spa.  Plus, those administering the injections at such places are highly unlikely to have had the correct training or be board certified doctors.

If you don’t want your Botox treatment to be botched, make sure you have it done by a professional in a clinic that is obviously a medical one.  Even doctors who tick nearly all the requirements for hygiene can botch the job if they are not trained and experienced in Botox injection work.