Millennials Are Interested in Botulinum Toxin Injections for Prevention of Facial Rhytids

Abstract

Background: Botulinum toxin has been utilized for the treatment of facial rhytids since 2002. Since development, the indications for botulinum toxin have expanded greatly. Typically utilized in older generations for the treatment of rhytids, younger generations may be pursuing botulinum toxin injections for prevention rather than solely treatment of rhytids at a younger age. Methods: A 26-question survey was designed on Qualtrics and distributed to people through Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) system. The Data was extracted from the Qualtrics website and processed with Microsoft Excel. Results: Out of 516 completed surveys, 92% of respondents were familiar with botulinum toxin injections with 21% having received botulinum toxin injections and 18% have received injections for cosmetic indications. Of those who have received botulinum toxin injections, 45% utilized injections for the treatment of wrinkles, 37% for the prevention of wrinkles, and 18% for the management of a non-cosmetic indication. When all respondents were asked the purpose of botulinum toxin injections, 11% thought they were for the prevention of wrinkles, 25% believed they were for the treatment of wrinkles, while 63% believe they are for both the prevention and treatment of wrinkles. Conclusions: Younger patients are pursuing botulinum toxin injections at an earlier initial age than their older counterparts. Significantly more people believe that these injections are intended for the prevention and treatment of facial rhytids rather than treatment alone. Plastic surgeons must be aware of the shifting landscape in order to adequately access this increasing patient population.