Botox is a very effective muscle inactivating substance. It is produced by a bacteria, but is highly refined and purified to ensure freedom from impurities and accuracy in dosing. Small quantities only are used and these will not have effects on the rest of the body. The medication works by preventing transmission of impulses between the nerve and the muscle. It is permanent, but function of the muscle does return as new nerve endings grow from the nerve to the muscle over a period of months. Botox is a trade name for diluted, purified form of the Botulism toxin, a potent muscle relaxant.

Extremely small doses of Botox are injected into a specific muscle, causing the action of only that muscle to be paralyzed. Botox is very effective in improving wrinkles due to facial expression, such as worry lines of the forehead, frown lines between the eyebrows, and crow's feet around the eyes.