Anti-wrinkle injections Botulinum toxin
A small dose of botulinum toxin relaxes the muscle that folds the skin: movement lines usually soften over about two weeks, and the effect wears off over three to four months.
Key facts
- Who you’ll see
-
- Dr. Svetlana Tagaeva Medical Director
- Dr. Olga Ibrakova Cosmetology
- Dr. Daria Banina Cosmetology
- Where
- CREAMÉ, 350 Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah 1, Dubai
- Session
- A few minutes of injections, after the assessment
- Numbing
- Optional: numbing cream or ice
- Downtime
- Usually little or none
- Course
- One session, repeated when it wears off if you wish
What anti-wrinkle treatment is for
Lines that come and go with expression: frown lines, forehead lines, crow's feet. Beyond lines, a jaw made wide by a strong chewing muscle, and sweating heavy enough to get in your way.
Concerns it may help with
How anti-wrinkle treatment works
Botulinum toxin type A, a prescription medicine, given as a few small injections. It temporarily blocks the signal from nerve to muscle, so the muscle relaxes and the line it kept folding softens. It affects only movement, only in the muscle treated, and wears off on its own. In the skin it quiets the sweat glands; in the masseter, the chewing muscle at the angle of the jaw, it can slim the lower face. It does nothing for lost volume: that's a different family.
A session, step by step
- We start with your concern and your health: pregnancy, nerve and muscle conditions, allergies, medicines and past treatments. The doctor watches your face move, checks your brows and eyelids, and takes photographs in the same light each time.
- Make-up is removed and the skin cleansed; numbing cream or ice first, if you'd like it.
- A few small doses into each muscle being treated, with a fine needle. For the masseter, the doctor first checks that the width is muscle rather than bone; for sweating, many tiny injections go into the skin.
- A review at about two weeks, once the effect has fully developed, for any small adjustment.
What to expect
How it feels
Quick: the injections themselves usually take a few minutes. A fine needle and a brief sting at each point; numbing cream can be used, and ice beforehand can lessen bruising. Injections for sweating, in the underarms or palms, are more numerous and more uncomfortable.
Downtime
Usually little or none. Small bruises are common, and a mild headache for a day or two is not unusual. Leave make-up off and don't touch the area for about six hours.
How many sessions
One session, repeated when it wears off if you wish. On the face, the effect is fully developed at about two weeks and usually lasts three to four months. The masseter slims gradually, peaking at about three months, and regains its size over six months to a year. For underarm sweating, the effect lasted a median of about six and a half months in a trial.
Who it may not suit
We go through your health and medicines first, because anti-wrinkle treatment may not suit you, or may need to wait, if any of these apply:
- You are pregnant or breastfeeding: treatment waits.
- You have a condition of the nerves or muscles, such as myasthenia gravis.
- You are allergic to an ingredient of the medicine.
- You tend to form keloid scars.
- You take aminoglycoside antibiotics or other medicines that can strengthen the effect.
- You take blood thinners, anti-inflammatory painkillers, fish oil or ginkgo: bruising is more likely, and the doctor decides whether to go ahead.
- A brow or eyelid has dropped, or your face moves differently, without any treatment: see a doctor first, urgently if it came on suddenly.
- Your sweating affects the whole body, comes at night or began in adulthood: the doctor looks for another cause first, such as an illness or a medicine.
Risks and side effects
Common and short-lived: small bruises, in roughly one in ten to one in four people, slight swelling or tenderness, and a headache that usually passes within a day or two.
Less common: the medicine reaches a nearby muscle. In a review of studies with more than 8,000 people, upper-face treatment led to a drooping eyelid in 2.5% and a lowered brow in 3.1%, all settling on their own, usually within a few weeks. Treatment near the eyes can also leave them dry or irritated.
In the masseter: chewing can feel weaker for a while, usually back to normal within three months. Rarely, a limited or uneven smile, a bulge in the muscle when you clench, or sunken cheeks or sagging.
In the neck, where doses are larger: a small risk of difficulty swallowing or a change in the voice, usually settling over a few weeks.
For sweating: after treatment of the palms, the pinch between thumb and fingers can be weaker for weeks or months.
Rare, but important to know: an allergic reaction, blurred or double vision, a severe headache lasting weeks, or the effect spreading, with general muscle weakness or difficulty swallowing or breathing, days or weeks later. Spreading, or a severe allergic reaction, needs urgent medical care.
Repeated large doses at short intervals have been linked to antibodies that make the medicine work less well.
Aftercare
- Leave make-up off and don't touch the area for about six hours.
- A cold pack helps with any swelling or bruising.
- Exercise and flying: an expert consensus found no evidence for avoiding them.
- Daily sunscreen, and sunglasses outdoors: Dubai's sun ages skin, and squinting deepens crow's feet.
- Get urgent medical help for difficulty swallowing or breathing, or weakness beyond the treated area; message us about anything else that worries you.
How pricing works
We don't publish prices. The cost depends on the areas treated, such as the frown lines, forehead or crow's feet, and on the dose your muscles need, set by the doctor at the consultation. You know the full plan and its cost before you start.
Our take
Anti-wrinkle injections are a tool for movement, used in small doses, with one aim: a face that looks rested and still moves like yours.
We start with the smallest dose that does the job and add at the follow-up if needed: a dose can't be taken back, only waited out. If a line is etched at rest or comes from lost volume, we'll say what might help, and if the honest answer is to wait, we'll say that too.
Questions people ask
How do I choose a clinic for anti-wrinkle injections in Dubai?
Start with who injects: a DHA-licensed doctor, whose licence you can check, who watches how your face moves before suggesting a dose. Expect a plan that starts small, a follow-up, plain talk about risks, and a clinic willing to say no. Here, anti-wrinkle injections are Dr. Olga Ibrakova's focus; Dr. Daria Banina treats the upper face, full face and neck.
How much do anti-wrinkle injections cost, for the forehead, a full face or a “baby” dose?
We don't publish prices. The cost depends on the areas treated, from a single area such as the forehead to a full upper face, and on the dose your muscles need, smaller or standard, which the doctor sets at the consultation. You know the full plan and its cost before you start.
“Baby” vs standard anti-wrinkle injections on the forehead: worth it, and how long do results last?
“Baby” is an informal name for smaller doses of the same medicine, placed to soften movement rather than stop it. On the forehead, small doses help keep the brows from dropping, and expert consensus has moved towards lower doses for the upper face. The trade-off is a lighter effect that may wear off sooner than the usual three to four months, so it suits fine lines better than strong muscles.
How long do anti-wrinkle injections take to work, and what are the downtime and aftercare?
The effect builds gradually and is fully developed at about two weeks; the masseter takes longer, peaking at around three months. Downtime is usually little or none. Aftercare is simple: leave make-up off and don't touch the area for about six hours. An expert consensus found no reason to avoid exercise or flying.
How long do anti-wrinkle injections last, and how many sessions per year?
For lines, usually three to four months: in an analysis of frown-line treatment, more than half of those who responded still had a benefit at four months. You can repeat it when movement returns, so up to three or four sessions a year for lines and fewer for the masseter, avoiding large doses at short intervals.
What are the benefits, risks and side effects of anti-wrinkle injections on the face?
For most people, softer movement lines and a more rested look for three to four months. Small bruises and a passing headache are common. Less often the medicine reaches a nearby muscle: in a review of studies with more than 8,000 people, an eyelid drooped in 2.5% and a brow in 3.1%, all settling on their own.
Which areas can anti-wrinkle injections treat: frown lines, around the eyes, the neck?
Mostly the upper face: frown lines, forehead lines and crow's feet. Also the masseter at the angle of the jaw, bands and lines on the neck, where larger doses call for care, and, injected into the skin, the underarms and palms for heavy sweating. Lines that stay at rest, or folds from lost volume, usually need a different treatment.
How do masseter anti-wrinkle injections work on the jaw, and how long do results last?
They relax the masseter, the chewing muscle at the angle of the jaw, so it gradually shrinks and the lower face can look narrower. The change usually shows from about two weeks and peaks at around three months; the muscle then regains its size slowly, over six months to a year. Clenching, grinding and heavy chewing can shorten the result.
Is masseter anti-wrinkle treatment worth it: what are the benefits, risks, side effects and downtime?
It can be, when the width is muscle rather than bone or a salivary gland, which the doctor checks first: the lower face then narrows gradually. Downtime is usually little or none. Chewing can feel weaker for a while, usually back to normal within three months. Rarely, the smile is limited or uneven, the muscle bulges when you clench, or the cheeks look sunken.
Masseter anti-wrinkle injections vs HIFU or dermal filler: which one for the jawline and jowls?
They do different jobs. Masseter injections narrow a jaw made wide by muscle; they don't lift. Jowls mostly come from skin and tissue loosening along the jawline, which Ultraformer MPT, our focused ultrasound (HIFU), can firm gradually, with the result showing at two to three months. Hyaluronic-acid filler adds structure at the chin or jaw. The doctor looks at muscle, skin and bone first.
Can anti-wrinkle injections treat excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis) in the underarms or hands?
They can. Injected into the skin, botulinum toxin quiets the nerve signal to the sweat glands. In a year-long trial for underarm sweating, three in four people treated improved by two points on a four-point severity scale, against one in four with a placebo. The palms can be treated too. A strong antiperspirant is usually tried first.
How long does anti-wrinkle treatment for hyperhidrosis last, and what are the side effects?
In that trial the effect lasted a median of about six and a half months, so treatment is usually repeated once or twice a year. It was well tolerated. The injections are uncomfortable, the palms most of all, and after palm treatment the pinch between thumb and fingers can be weaker for weeks or months.
Do men have anti-wrinkle injections for the forehead or the masseter, and is the dose different?
Yes, on the same areas as for women. Men's facial muscles are, on average, larger, so the dose follows the strength and pattern of each person's muscles rather than a set formula. The aim is the same for everyone: a face that looks rested and still moves like yours.
Can I have anti-wrinkle injections during pregnancy or when breastfeeding?
No: treatment waits. Botulinum toxin is not given in pregnancy or while breastfeeding, because its safety in pregnancy has not been adequately studied. In pregnancies exposed before they were known, recorded in a maker's safety database, birth defects were no more common than in the general population, but that does not prove it harmless. If you find you are pregnant after a treatment, tell your doctor.
Good vs bad anti-wrinkle results: what's the difference?
Good results look rested: lines softened, brows in place, and a face that still moves. Poor results usually come from too much medicine, or medicine in the wrong place: a flat, heavy forehead, dropped brows or a sharply raised outer brow. Too much can only be waited out; a raised brow can usually be evened out with a small extra dose.
Sources
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Updated 27 October 2026