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It all started with an intrepid ophthalmologist determined to resolve devastating eye diseases without having to resort to invasive surgery.
Dr. Alan B. Scott looked at his patients suffering with Strabismus, an imbalance in the contractions of muscles that rotate the eyes. He knew there had to be a better way to heal the issue without subjecting them to operations and the inevitable scarring that came with the operations.
He tried a variety of precision-directed injections, using alcohols, enzymes and even snake neurotoxins before finally discovering his greatest success with a product he named the “Eye Aligner” aka “Oculinum™.”
Oculinum is formed by spores of the bacteria Clostridium Botulinum. It binds to receptors in skeletal muscles and nerve endings and blocks the release of a neurotransmitter that causes muscles to contract.
This temporary, but effective, muscle paralysis allowed the eye muscles in Dr. Scott’s patients to be brought into balance. He had triumphed!
Word swiftly spread of these incredible results, and soon the combination of the drug plus precision injections was adopted to successfully treat a multitude of ailments. Debilitating muscle spasms, cerebral palsy, leaky bladders, cold hands, overactive sweat glands, migraines, even cardiac conditions were being treated with this incredible technique.
Allergan, a company that marketed ocular care products, bought the rights to this drug in 1991 and rebranded it as Botox.
News of the drug’s desirable “side-effect” spread almost as quickly as its medical victories. Once this “wrinkle eraser” became adopted by celebrities, Botox was propelled into mainstream headlines for its amazing aesthetic outcomes.
Understandably, many were hesitant to indulge in the practice, including me! Why would I voluntarily inject a neurotoxin into my face!? No thank you! So let’s take a step back, and allow me to share with you what I learned.
Sure, Botox starts out as the same toxin we know causes those debilitating foodborn illnesses. But before being used in a medical capacity, it is purified by removing contaminating bacterial substances. After that, it is refined by removing six of the seven neurotoxins produced by the spores! Then it is diluted.
It has been estimated that a single gram of this purified protein is enough to fulfill an entire year’s worth of cosmetic treatments…globally!
For now, the bulk of Botox applications remain in the medical field, with new uses being discovered all the time, (scientists are currently studying its positive effects on depression!)
Once I educated myself on these fascinating statistics, I’ll admit that Botox became my “gateway drug.”
While I was still a practicing E.R. physician, I had the opportunity to witness the results that fellow doctors achieved on their patients for cosmetic purposes. It wasn’t actually the smoothing of frown lines that enticed me, but the emotional buoyancy it produced in the patient’s mood.
It was amazing to me that something so simple (and safe) could make such a difference in people’s lives.
Today, I have the joy of witnessing these up lifting shifts in my own patients on a daily basis and, of course, I remain fascinated by the evergrowing list of issues this amazing substance continues to relieve!