Like Botox Cosmetic, Dysport is a wrinkle relaxer based on a purified form of Botulinum toxin type A. Both products are particularly well suited for the vertical lines between the eyebrows known as glabellar lines, and are sometimes used for other dynamic facial wrinkles such as horizontal lines across the forehead and crows feet.
Unlike Botox Cosmetic, which earned approval by the Federal Drug Administration in 1991, Dysport received the thumbs up by the FDA just one year ago. What has the national aesthetic industry learned about the product since then? What are professionals saying about it? What are Dysport’s advantages over Botox Cosmetic, if any?
One Santa Barbara-based cosmetic surgeon explains that there are a couple of differences between Dysport and Botox Cosmetic that a physician will note, but that won’t make too much difference to most patients. In an article on plasticsurgery.com, Dr. Terry Perkins says that the Botulinum molecules in Dysport are smaller, requiring a different unit of measure. For instance, where 20 units of Botox might suffice for one area of the face, 50 units of Dysport may be needed. But with Dysport costing less, there’s a slight cost advantage to the doctor and patient. Dr. Perkins says that Dysport costs him about 10 percent less than Botox, and includes more product per vial.
The smaller molecules in Dysport seem to influence a couple more of its properties, according to many physicians. Dysport seems to diffuse over a wider area of the face, notes two Los Angeles area practitioners. This could be why some doctors believe Dysport works more effectively across the entire forehead than Botox. And some feel that the smaller sized molecules lead to less discomfort at the injection site.
While doctors agree that the two products are similar except in their molecule size and units of measure, there are few other aspects of Dysport and Botox they readily agree on. Many physicians say Dysport acts more quickly than Botox. One noted, however, that the Dysport advantage was measured in just hours, not days. One of the two LA doctors mentioned above says he’s noted no difference at all in onset times for his patients.
The bottom line for all concerned—does Dysport last longer than Botox? Unfortunately, there’s no clear answer to this question either. Some physicians feel Dysport does last longer, but perhaps just days, maybe a week or a little longer. No one seems to believe there’s a very significant difference.
It seems there’s little doctors are ready to state definitively when it comes to the two wrinkle blockers. The one thing professionals do agree on is that more will be known as the use of Dysport becomes more widespread and years of practice yield more data. Dr. Terry Perkins believes that he may end up preferring Dysport to Botox as he gains more experience with it.
Even thought it seems too early to draw many conclusions, there is good news. The introduction of Dysport into the marketplace means there’s competition at last for Botox. And there are at least two other wrinkle blockers in the pipeline, probably more. It’s a safe bet that efficacy will go up and prices will come down, at least eventually.