Botox for frown lines

Why this area works so well

The glabellar complex — corrugators and procerus — has one job: pull the brows together and down. There is no lifting muscle in it to protect, which is what makes it forgiving. Relaxing it fully has no downside for brow position; if anything it produces a slight lift.

That is the opposite of the forehead, where the muscle you are relaxing is the only lifter. Same product, same technique, completely different margin for error.

There is a second reason it matters more than its size suggests. The frown is the gesture that reads as anger, worry or disapproval, and it fires without you noticing — while concentrating, in sunlight, reading a screen. People frequently report being told they look approachable after treatment without anyone identifying what changed.

Dose and injection points

16 to 24 units across five points: one in the procerus at the bridge of the nose, and two per side into the corrugators. Men are usually at the top of the range or above it, because the muscle mass is larger.

The dose is decided by watching you frown, not by a chart. A strongly asymmetric frown — very common — needs asymmetric dosing, and that is only visible in movement.

One safety point worth stating: the injections stay above the orbital rim. Product that migrates below it can affect the levator muscle of the eyelid and cause a temporary droop. It is uncommon, it resolves on its own over weeks, and it is a technique-dependent risk rather than a product one.

What frown line botox costs

Consultation is free and the 15-day review is included. The full rate for every area is on the price page.

When the 11s are there at rest

Look in a mirror with your face completely relaxed. If the vertical lines are still visible, they are static — etched into the dermis rather than produced by the current contraction — and toxin alone will soften them rather than remove them.

What tends to happen with those over time is worth knowing: with regular treatment the fold stops being reinforced, and static lines do soften across the first and second year. It is slow and partial. Anyone promising to erase a deep static glabellar line in one session with toxin is describing something else.

Common mistakes in this area

• Under-dosing to keep the price down. Eight units in a glabella that needs twenty gives six weeks of partial effect and a patient who concludes botox does not work.
• Treating the glabella and ignoring the forehead in a strong frowner. Some people compensate by recruiting the forehead, and the result can look unbalanced.
• Chasing a static line with more units. It does not work and it is the route to a frozen upper face.
• Injecting below the orbital rim. The technique risk described above.

Frequently asked questions

Medical references

The clinical claims on this page rest on public, verifiable sources. They are cited so you can check them, not as an endorsement of this practice by those organisations.

• Aesthetic Surgery Journal (2025) — systematic review of HIFU in skin tightening and body contouring
• Lasers in Medical Science (2020) — systematic review and meta-analysis of HIFU safety and efficacy for face and neck
• American Academy of Dermatology — wrinkles and treatment options
• INVIMA — medical device registration in Colombia