Do We Prefer Dysport, or Botox?

We love Botox, and we love Dysport. These are just facts.

In the wake of our Botox event, we found a lot of patients were asking about the difference between Dysport and Botox.

As a reminder, both are an injectable that relaxes the muscles that cause wrinkles such as frown line, forehead lines, and crows feet. Botox is made by a company called Allergan, has been around for more than 20 years, and has an extremely high safety and efficacy profile.

In April of 2009 a new Botox competitor was approved by the FDA called Dysport. Dysport is marketed by a company called Medicis (also the company who makes Restylane), and although it’s new here in the US, it has been available in Europe for a long time. You may also have heard of Dysport as Reloxin, which was its former name.

Overall Botox and Dysport are very similar. Both are a type of botulinum type A used to relax the muscles that cause frown lines and other over active muscles of the face, like forehead lines and crows feet.

It’s like comparing apples to apples. There’s a difference between a Fuji apple and a Gala apple, but they are still both apples. Dysport is a smaller-sized molecule so its unit measurement is different than Botox.

Both have been in use for years and have a high safety profile, both can be used on other parts of the face and body, and both Dysport and Botox must be injected every 3-6 months. Here at SkinSpaMED. Dysport is the same price as Botox. Both show similar efficacy and side effects, and in most double-blind clinical studies both the patient and the doctor were unable to tell the results apart.

Differences between Botox and Dysport

There has been much discussion amongst physicians about the differences between Botox and Dysport, or IF there is any difference. Here are the main differences:

– Dysport lasts longer. This is still being debated and studied, but our experience here at SkinSpaMED has shown a longer lifespan.

– Dysport has a slightly quicker onset (2-5 days vs 4-7 days for Botox)

– Dysport diffuses more; i.e., spreads to a wider area.  This is an advantage in some areas of the face and a disadvantage in others

Some are happy that there is finally a Botox competitor, as Botox did monopolize the market for a long time. But the appearance of Dysport hasn’t brought pricing down as some thought it might. There are 3-5 other similar anti-wrinkle products in the FDA pipeline, so within the next few years we’ll have even more alternatives to Botox available. Safety is the key issue, and it remains to be seen if the new products can match the safety of Botox and Dysport.

We do live in a society of brand recognition, and as Botox has been available for much longer in the US, many people are more comfortable using what they know. Botox has become a household name, much like Kleenex or Xerox. Allergan has also spent thousands more in direct-to-consumer advertising with everything from TV commercials to print ads in major magazines.

Ultimately, it is far more important WHO is injecting your Botox or Dysport, than which of these two products you are using. Botox/Dysport mistakes and bad results are made by people, not the product. Please meet with an experienced professional prior to choosing a wrinkle-removing injectable and to discuss alternatives to Botox.