You may be a bit wary of “new” Botulinum Toxin type A (aka Botox) brands as there have been several that have been floating about the last few years that are unapproved and have resulted in some horror stories.
Certainly before 2022, the main approved Botulinum Toxin brands for use in the UK for cosmetic purposes were Botox (produced by Allergan), Azzalure (aka Dysport / Reloxin, produced by Galderma), and Bocouture (aka Xeomin, produced by Merz). Note only the named brands in Bold are approved for cosmetic use in the UK – not their other counterpart brand names.
But 2022 seems to be the year of new Botulinum Toxin innovations, with several new brands approved in the UK this year.
Let’s go through them…
Alluzience
Alluzience is a brand new botulinum toxin type A (relabotulinumtoxinA) launched by Galderma (the company behind Azzalure).
It is unique as it claims to have a quicker onset and longer duration of action than other Toxins brands out there. Their data currently claims that the treatment has rapid onset within as little as a day, and lasting for 6 months, rather than the average three of other products.
It has also been introduced as a liquid formulation – meaning it does not need to be reconstituted like other Toxin brands.
Nuceiva
Nuceiva is another brand new toxin to have hit the UK market by Evolus.
It is not an entirely new, as Nuceiva [probotulinumotxinA] has been used since 2019 in the United States, where it is marketed by Evolus under the name Jeuveau (it was nickamed “Newtox” when it first hit the market), and produced by Daewoong Pharmaceutical Co in South Korea under the name Nabota.
Nuceiva is similar to Botox, in that it consists of a 900kDa neurotoxin.
Trials from Evolus comparing Nuceiva to Botox and to placebo showed a responder rate of 87.2% for Jeuveau/Nuceiva in comparison to 82.8% for Botox and 4.2% for the placebo product.
Nuceiva is also reported to have a faster onset of action (2 days) and potential longer duration of action (4-5months). In theory, there is also supposed to be very little spread of the product, making it more precise, but meaning that extremely accurate placement and understanding of anatomy is key for its use. More clinical data is needed for all this.
Letybo
Letybo [letibotulinumtoxinA] is a brand new (in the EU and UK at least) Botulinum Toxin type A that has just been launched by Croma-Pharma in 2022.
Other forms of LetibotulinumtoxinA have been used in Asia where it has been a market leader for years. It was developed by Hugel in South Korea in the form Botulax. It is also marketed under the names Regenox, Zentox, Reage, Magnion, Hugel Toxin, Juvenlife, Botulim, and Botoshot.
Note that the above forms developed by Hugel are not licensed in the UK (or FDA-approved yet). It is also worth noting that some of the research around leibotulinumotxinA as Botulax has shown some potential disadvantages. Merz Pharmaceuticals found that it contained greater amounts of inactive toxin when compared to Bocouture/Xeomin, potentially reducing clinical efficacy. There would also be an increased risk of inducing an immune reaction and causing patients to become non-responders. This would need to be explored further.