How Much Does a Botox® Touch Up Cost?

Author

Dr. Stephen Cosentino

PRESIDENT OF EMPIRE MEDICAL TRAINING Botox® is a minimally invasive alternative to traditional cosmetic surgery. It’s also much cheaper, at least on a per-treatment basis. But unlike cosmetic surgery, Botox treatment is meant to be temporary. Even when administered as directed, its effects wear off in a matter of months, necessitating additional injections to maintain results. Those additional Botox injections are Botox touch ups. Before committing to treatment, new patients should understand how much a Botox touch up costs and how to know when one is needed. Botox Touch Up Costs: Shortly After Original Treatment There are two types of Botox touch ups: those required shortly after treatment due to injection errors or too little medication used, and those required several months later as the medication wears off. The best way to avoid the former is to work with a board-certified plastic surgeon or other provider who has completed a comprehensive Botox training program and therefore knows how to inject Botox properly. But the facial muscles are unpredictable, and even well-trained providers can make mistakes. Should You Pay for a Botox Touch Up? You know about how much Botox costs because your provider’s menu of services spell out how much they charge per unit of Botox. However, you might not need to pay for your Botox touch up at all. If the touch up is needed shortly after treatment, the provider may offer to administer a small number of units at no additional charge. It doesn’t hurt to ask. If you do need to pay for a Botox treatment shortly after the original, your provider should give you a discount. You might pay only 25% or 50% of what a comparable “new” treatment costs. How to Tell If You Need a Botox Touch Up After Original Treatment The basic answer is “if the treatment hasn’t adequately addressed your original cosmetic complaint.” It’s ultimately a subjective determination, and one that can be complicated by simultaneous cosmetic treatments. For example, Botox and dermal fillers are often injected at the same time for different FDA-approved or off-label indications. How Long Should You Wait Before a Botox Touch Up? As a new patient, you need to know how long Botox takes to work. The answer depends on what you mean by “takes to work,” but you should notice the effects within four or five days and see full effects within two weeks. This doesn’t occur until the temporary side effects (like local swelling, which affects many patients) dissipate. Botox Touch Up Costs: 3+ Months After Original Treatment A touch up may still be needed a few months after your original treatment as the medication begins to dissipate. Any treated area is suitable for this type of touch up: high-dose areas like the forehead lines, medium-dose areas like the frown lines, and lower-dose areas like crow’s feet. Providers consider these touch ups rather than new treatments because they occur before the treated area has gone completely back to its pre-treatment state. They require fewer units of Botox than “new” treatments and cost less as a result. However, the provider is unlikely to discount the treatment, so expect to pay full price based on the number of units required.