BOTOX® has come a long way from wrinkles. In fact, some people might be surprised to learn that men have become frequent users of the classic skin rejuvenating treatment. And they would be more surprised to learn what doctors at West County Plastic Surgeons in St. Louis have known for quite some time: BOTOX® is finding a new purpose as a way for men to tackle the problem of sweaty heads.

Yes, according to such news outlets as the New York Post, many men are finding that BOTOX® is an excellent way to get ahead in their careers by avoiding the sweaty foreheads and scalps that can spell trouble in important business situations.

One doctor explained that she has been providing BOTOX® to men for a decade, but recently she has noticed an uptick in patients who are seeking the treatment as a way of combatting sweatiness as well as for removing wrinkles.

Another doctor told the Post, “When men are in business meetings, they normally sweat profusely from their scalps, and it makes them look insecure.”

Of course, BOTOX® as a remedy for sweating is nothing new. In 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the treatment—which is most commonly associated with its ability to smooth wrinkles on the face—for hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating).

For decades, doctors in St. Louis and throughout the country have used BOTOX® as a quick, safe, and simple way to diminish the appearance of horizontal lines on the forehead, frown lines between the eyebrows, and crow’s feet around the eyes. More recently, however, more patients are realizing the additional benefits that BOTOX® procedures can have toward alleviating ailments like hyperhidrosis in the palms and armpits.

In a typical case for most patients, doctors will inject BOTOX® to smooth out wrinkles. This procedure works due to BOTOX®’s ability to paralyze muscle tissue. But that paralyzation ability, it turns out, is also what makes the popular treatment an effective way to prevent sweat glands from over-producing. When injected into an excessively sweaty region of the body—such as the head, palms, or armpits—the BOTOX® treatment binds to nerve endings near the injection site, blocking the release of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter chemical that ordinarily carries messages between nerve cells. The end result? Sweat glands never receive the message to produce sweat, and the patient no longer suffers from excessive sweating. The FDA first approved BOTOX® for use to treat axillary hyperhidrosis, although many doctors use it to treat sweaty palms (palmar hyperhidrosis) and even sweaty feet (plantar hyperhidrosis).

For patients in St. Louis, a treatment to reduce sweatiness in the palms requires about 50 to 100 units per palm, although the exact dosage varies from patient to patient. Likewise, armpit treatments require about 25 units and last for approximately three months. By contrast, a BOTOX® treatment to remove wrinkles in the forehead usually requires between 20 and 45 units. Generally speaking, however, treatment amounts are dictated by the size of the treatment area.

BOTOX® Cosmetic is available to patients in the St. Louis area. Whether they suffer from hyperhidrosis, or simply want to treat fine lines and wrinkles caused by the repetitive contraction of specific underlying facial muscles, it is a quick, safe, and well-established procedure used frequently by many patients.