Medical Evidence that Botox Fights Depression
“Wait. I thought botox was only used to smooth out some of those wrinkles?” While botox injections can treat wrinkles, that’s just a fraction of their potential! Botox injections also help control your bladder, treat excessive sweating in some areas, and ease migraines. Additionally, recent studies have shown that botox can also help women with depression.
A 2017 study found that when comparing injections of 30 U, 50 U, and a placebo (saline) into the arm, after 6 weeks, all women in each group felt a decrease in their depression symptoms. Furthermore, after 24 weeks, there were additional decreases in these symptoms, more prevalently in the 50 U injection group. This study incorporated three separate rating scales in determining if botox injections alleviated symptoms of depression. These scales included: the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), the Clinical Global Impression of Severity of Illness (CGI-S), and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D17). Each of these scales showed a negative change (a positive effect on the study subject) during the 6 and 24 week periods.
But this isn’t the only study that has proven botox injections as beneficial for women with depression. Another study done in 2017 also showed that botox injections help with depression symptoms after 6 weeks, agreeing with the study explained above. This study used a Beck score, similar to the scales listed above, to determine the results. However, this study additionally found no change (positive or negative) in women with depression after only 2 weeks. So, if you are wanting to use botox injections to help combat your depression symptoms, patience is important, which might mean waiting at least 6 weeks in order to see results.
So, you see, botox injections aren’t just for erasing those wrinkles anymore! Additional studies are being conducted in order to solidify these results, but if you would like to know more information or see the benefits of botox injections for your depression symptoms, contact your health care provider.
