Loading...
Palmer and colleagues present data from a clinical trial that assessed the safety and effectiveness of focused cold therapy for reducing the appearance of forehead wrinkles caused by muscle contraction. The treatment consisted of insertion of a probe tipped with 27-gauge needles and cooled by a gas cylinder containing nitrous oxide. At a temperature no less than −88°C, this apparatus induced temporary second-degree injury to the temporal branch of the facial nerve via partial disruption of the axon and myelin sheath. One month after treatment, investigators rated improvement: 91% of the 36 women (age, 30–70) who were analyzed were improved by 1 point and 70% by 2 points on a 5-point glabellar wrinkle scale. At 60 days, 52% of subjects still…