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Botulinum toxin, or botulinum toxin, is a toxin produced by bacteria (bacilli) of botulinum toxin (Clostridium botulinum). The botulinum toxin is the most powerful poison known to act on the nervous system. In extreme cases, it causes paralysis of the respiratory system muscles and death.
Where is the botulinum toxin found?
Botulinum toxin appears in food products as a result of improper storage or improper food preservation. Botulinum toxins reproduce in anaerobic conditions, which is why they are most often poisoned botulinum toxin it occurs as a result of the consumption of products stored in canned food – meat and its preserves, but also canned vegetables and fruit. The canned food, infested with botulinum toxin bacteria, has a convex bottom and emits a characteristic hiss when opened. The botulism bacteria can also be found in honey.
Properties and action of botulinum toxin: symptoms of botulinum toxin poisoning
Botulinum toxin paralyzes the nervous system and muscles.
If poisoning occurs botulinum toxin, i.e. botulism, as a result of eating food contaminated with it, dizziness, dry mouth, visual disturbances and photophobia appear. Down symptoms These are then followed by muscle weakness, as well as constipation and flatulence due to paralysis of the intestinal muscles (no peristalsis, i.e. bowel movements). The respiratory muscles are then paralyzed, killing the patient.
Procedure in case of poisoning with botulinum toxin
In case of poisoning botulinum toxin by eating contaminated food, the only effective way treatment there is an application antitoxins. It prevents the multiplication of botulinum toxins and neutralizes the poisonous substances they produce. Each case of gastrointestinal botulism is treated in the hospital, where additional gastric lavage, deep enema and vomiting are performed to remove the stomach. botulinum toxin from the body. Treatment poisoning caused by ingestion botulinum toxin is difficult and long-lasting, and prognosis depends on the time after which the antitoxin was administered. Occasionally, the eyesight and muscles can be damaged beyond repair.
Applications of botulinum toxin
Botulinum toxin however, it is not only a dangerous poison, but also a substance that has been used in aesthetic medicine for some time. Beauty treatments are used in beauty salons botulinum toxin – their main purpose is to reverse the skin aging processes and eliminate mimic wrinkles. Botulinum toxin when injected into the muscle, it prevents it from contracting. Such a treatment smoothes wrinkles and prevents the formation of new ones, but also significantly reduces the mobility and facial expressions – hence the impression of a face-mask in people who have performed the treatment with the use of botulinum toxin.
Used in aesthetic medicine this dose toxins they are low and pose no risk of poisoning. Nevertheless, they are possible after administration botulinum toxin in the form of injections side effectstherefore, such a procedure must be performed by a qualified specialist – a doctor specializing in aesthetic medicine, not a beautician.
The main purpose of the application botulinum toxin in aesthetic medicine is the reduction of wrinkles and the aging process of the facial skin, but sometimes this substance is used to treat strabismus and in the treatment of neurological diseases manifested by excessive muscle tension. Botulinum venom is also used to treat excessive sweating.
Is the use of botox in aesthetic medicine reversible and safe?
The effects of the treatment with the application botulinum toxin (muscle paralysis and weakness) are reversible – the next treatment should be performed after about 3 months.
The most common complication there is pain at the site of the botox injection after the procedure. Occasionally, you may experience muscle weakness or muscle soreness throughout the body. Up to a few days after the injection with botulinum toxin a red rash may persist at the injection site.
If it was injected too a large dose of botox or treatments were repeated too often, the familiar from cinema and television screens may appear effect face mask because the facial muscles are paralyzed and not working properly.