The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are investigating several cases across the U.S. of people suffering harmful reactions after receiving Botox injections.
According to the CDC, as of Friday, there have been reports of 19 cases across 9 states of people receiving "botulinum toxin injections" by unlicensed individuals or in non-health care settings like homes and spas. Furthermore, officials say that some people even got injections of fake or unverified products.
The news comes a week after the Illinois State Health Department alerted health care facilities to watch for patients showing botulism symptoms possibly linked to these fake Botox injections.
Now the CDC says that more states are reporting cases; these include Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and Washington.
CDC says that nine out of the 19 people who reported illnesses were hospitalized and four were treated with "botulism antitoxin" due to toxins possibly spreading beyond the injection site. The symptoms reported included blurry vision and double vision, drooping eyelids, difficulty swallowing, dry mouth, slurred speech, difficulty breathing, fatigue and generalized weakness.
All cases involved females aged 25 to 59, with 95% receiving the injection for cosmetic reasons.
The CDC urges providers to thoroughly inform patients before injections and advises patients to do their research beforehand. It also encourages patients to receive injections only from licensed providers trained in FDA-approved Botox administration and to do so preferably in a health care setting rather than in a spa.
Potentially fatal illness could be linked to fake Botox, officials say
Botulinum toxin, the main component of Botox, rarely causes sickness. But under certain conditions, it's considered one of the most lethal substances.
