KLAS-TV Channel 8 News Las VegasA Local Look at Botox For Depression

A Local Look at Botox For Depression

Botulinum Toxin A -- better known as "botox" -- is famous for its wrinkle-flattening effect, but it does a lot more than smooth out your forehead. It's currently used for a number of treatments. The Eye on Health team asked two local doctors about the treatment.

Las Vegas neurologist and headache specialist Mehdi Ansarinia uses botox to relieve chronic cervical pain. "It helps relax the muscles. And for reasons we're not clear on, it does provide pain relief for long-term."

Doctors are currently using botox to treat numerous disorders including bladder spasms, twitching eyes, chronic perspiration, tinnitus and foot ulcers. Now, a small study finds that injecting botox into a furrowed brow may lift depression for some people.

Dr. Ansarinia is skeptical and said, "People who have depression, they have biological predisposition or tendency for depression. And often, environmental events and stressors that promote the depression and bring it out in the open. So, it's usually a combination of two factors, both factors."

Las Vegas plastic surgeon Goesel Anson is intrigued. She wants to see if further studies support the theory and if so, she has some ideas why it might work.

Dr. Anson said, "If the botox can make someone look less angry, not frowning, then people will respond to them in a different way. People respond better to people who don't look angry than to people who are frowning. And because of that, I think the subject is more likely to feel good about themselves because people are responding to them in a different way."

The exterior can affect the interior and for some patients, the cosmetic benefits of botox can have a positive impact on self-esteem.

But Dr. Anson has a word of caution. "If you don't feel good inside, changing your appearance isn't going to help anything," she said.

The study on botox and depression was conducted by dermatologist Eric Finzi in Maryland, and involved ten patients.

Email anchor Paula Francis at pfrancis@klastv.com