Facial Injections: Info, Prices, Photos, Reviews, Q&A

Botox cost can vary significantly between areas and who is performing the procedure.

It typically ranges from $8 to $15 depending on where you are located. A lot also has to do with how experience the doctor is. In some clinics, the more you inject, the cheaper it gets. (Ben Behnam, MD, Santa Monica Dermatologic Surgeon)

Botox is a wonderful medicine that can really improve your wrinkles caused by contraction of facial muscles.

The medicine usually last 3-4 months. In order to get a good result, it is important to use the appropriate concentration of the Botox.

A very diluted Botox will not be effective. Therefore, Botox can be fairly expensive.

Botox cost is usually charge by units used or sites injected. Most doctors charge about 12-15 dollars per unit. This charge translates to approximately 200-300 dollars per site. (T.Y. Steven Ip, MD, FACS, New York Plastic Surgeon)

Per unit Botox pricing is best

Per unit pricing allows more variabilty for patients. At roughly $12-15 per unit, Botox usage in the cosmetic arena includes wrinkle relaxation, excessive sweat reduction, treatment of neck bands, and improved scar healing.

Each of these uses can require vastly different amounts of Botox, and there is no set amount per patient since every patient’s muscles, sweat glands, scars, and individual goals are different.

If you go to a provider that only uses Botox pricing by regions or sites, you may be subsidizing another patient’s treatments who needs more than you.

But at the end of the day, select a provider who you trust, who gets consistently good results, and who provides safe injections, regardless of the price. It’s your face! (Randolph Capone, MD, FACS, Baltimore Facial Plastic Surgeon)

Cost of Botox injections may be determined by the unit or the area

The charge for Botox treatments may vary by the practice. The most important consideration, though, is to be seen by an experienced provider who spends the time finding out what your goals are and doing an examination.

There is so much more to getting a successful outcome than the injection itself. I used to charge patients by the “area,” and a few years ago, changed to charging by the “unit.”

To have an optimal correction of the glabellar area(between the inner brows), in some patients may take only 15 units and others up to 30.

The number of units to acheive optimal correction varies by the strength and volume of the muscle present. It didn’t make sense to charge a patient who needed 15 units the same as apatient who need 30 units.

The way physicians purchase and pay for Botox is by the unit, either in 50 or 100 unit vials. The product cost is a significant fraction of the typical charge for the treatment. In our office, we use a diagram to document the site of the injections and the number of units used in each area.

We are conservative with first-time Botox patients to try to get an optimum correction without using more product than necessary. We encourage new patients to come back a week or two after their first treatment to assess the result and, if necessary, fine tune it.

There is much more to the use of Botox than just weakening the muscle. By seeing the patient back in follow up one can assess the changes from the treatment. Many of the positive aesthetic outcomes come from changing the balance between muscles that lift the brow and those that pull the brow down.

Each patient is somwaht unique in this area, and occasionally, adjustments or additional Botox can enhance the result. The range for per unit Botox price is typically 12-15 dollars per unit. (John E. Gross, MD, Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon)

Beware of bargain Botox prices

Although each individual treatment is usually affordable, Botox is an expensive treatment over a long period of time. In order to understand how much the product will cost, you need to know some information. Botox comes in large bottles filled with a near invisible powder.

Each bottle has 100 Units in it. In order to use the product on a patient, the material must be diluted in saline and then injected. There is no regulation on the amount of dilution. The standard dilution of the the bottle is with 4cc or 2.5 cc of saline.

The preference between the two dilutions depends on many factors that do not influence your result. Most patients will receive 30-40 Units total of Botox for a complete upper facial treatment. Most doctors try to schedule treatments close together so the bottle can be used for several patients before it expires.

The wholesale product itself, when purchased from a reputable vendor is quite expensive. I find that new Botox users have no idea what Units and number of injections really means, so I quote prices by region.

However, pricing by facial region should only be used as a pre-treatment guideline. Actual price in my practice varies from patient to patient, depending on the actual number of units being used. As with other things in life, you typically get what you pay for, so it is likely that bargain Botox is either imported Botox, not really Botox, or highly diluted Botox.

Every doctor and geographic region has different pricing, so you should call or go to more than one consultation to find out a price range before your first time. Pricing may also be lower if physicians use an assistant (that is often not a doctor) to provide injections.

You should decide for yourself if you are comfortable with this before going to the office. Finally, treating the whole upper face in your 20s seems a little excessive. Perhaps you should consider other baseline skin care options and treatments before deciding you will need Botox for the next 50 years. (Richard W. Westreich, MD, Manhattan Facial Plastic Surgeon)

Botox Cost: Getting What You Pay For and Getting Good Advice

When comparing the cost of Botox treatments, patients should know what they are paying for. In medical economic terms, there is a basic cost for the medication (in this case, Botox) to the provider, and a charge by the provider to the patient for the service of administering the injection, along with any ancillary services and amenities provided to the patient.

This constitutes the “global fee” the patient pays to the provider, in this case for both the medication and the service. Many doctors and “clinics” charge “by area” for Botox treatment. There is one fee for “forehead”, a different fee for “frown lines”, another fee for “crow’s feet”, etc.

The problem with this method, from the patient’s perspective, is that a patient has no idea how much of the product (Botox) was used, therefore no way to gauge the true cost of the product vs.

the service. This is a bit like a recipe that calls for “sugar” but does not specify how much should be used; it is difficult to reproduce the result over time. The tendency will be for the provider to use the most dilute strength of Botox to produce the desired effect, which maximizes the profit to the provider.

Also, this method does not account for the fact that individual patients vary in terms of the strength of their muscles in a given area; men generally require a higher dose to achieve the same degree of muscle relaxation, younger patients with less-established frown lines may not need as aggressive treatment, etc.

In my practice, Botox is charged “by unit(s)”, currently $15 per unit. Typically, I find that: treatment of the frown lines requires 12-20 units the horizontal forehead lines require about 15-25 units both crow’s feet can be treated with 10-15 units.

The beauty of this method is that it is scalable; if the cost of Botox rises (as it has, several times in the last 5 years), the price to the patient can be easily and logically adjusted; if a given dose is not effective in producing the desired result, a quick look at the patient’s chart will reveal the actual dose used, which can be adjusted upwards (or downwards) at the next visit, with the fees adjusting accordingly.

Finally, a responsible provider will offer patients a full menu of non-invasive services in terms of injectables, but should certainly also be capable of advising patients when injectables and other minor treatments have reached their maximum limits of utility.

In the best interest of patients in such cases, cosmetic surgical operations such as endoscopic brow lift, blepharoplasty, and face lift will provide the patient with much more effective and long-lasting results on a cost basis.

If one’s only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. While it is certainly true that most plastic surgeons would rather do surgery all day than inject Botox and fillers, these are wonderful and necessary additional non-invasive procedures that we gladly provide our patients in order to enhance the results of (or in some cases to forestall the need for) the cosmetic surgical procedures we provide.

However, injectables and Botox cannot and should not be the only tool in the chest. (Athleo Louis Cambre, MD, Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon)

Consider Quality before Botox Price

Before considering cost, consider the credentials and experience of the person who is going to perform the injection. How BOTOX Cosmetic is injected is critical to obtaining a result with which you will be satisfied.

That being said, prices vary widely. In general, prices may range from $10 per unit to $30 per unit. The price varies based upon the area in which you live, the amount of BOTOX Cosmetic purchased at one time, and the type of physician who is injecting it.

If your physician charges by the “area,” be sure to ask how many units you are receiving for a given price. This will allow you to know how much your physician is charging compared to another physician.

The number of units required depends on the size of the muscles, the desired clinical effect, and the number of areas injected. In general, plastic surgeons, facial plastic surgeons, oculoplastic surgeons, or dermatologists will charge more than other physicians.

This is because their training provides expertise in this area of medicine. Be sure to inquire about anesthesia and “touch ups.” Most physicians will not charge for minor “touch ups” performed within 2-4 weeks of the injection.

Lastly, be sure to communicate your goals to your physician. Only by understanding your goals can your physician meet and exceed your expectations. (Adam Schaffner, MD, FACS, New York Plastic Surgeon)