Fake Botox injections may have led to the hospitalizations of two people in Illinois, the state's Public Health Department said Monday.
"Illinois residents should exercise caution when considering cosmetic treatment," Dr. Sameer Vohra, the state's public health director, said in a media statement. "Receiving these treatments in unlicensed, unapproved settings can put you or your loved ones at serious risk for health problems."
Warnings nationwide about medical procedures at unregulated med spas are growing. The Illinois patients received injections from a nurse "who was performing work outside her authority," according to the Public Health Department.
Clostridium botulinum is a nerve toxin that relaxes facial muscles that would otherwise cause wrinkles. Botox is generally considered safe, but too much in the wrong places can be damaging, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In the latest cases, patients "reported symptoms similar to botulism such as blurred/double vision, droopy face, fatigue, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, hoarse voice following injection with either Botox or a possibly counterfeit version of the product," Illinois public health authorities said.
The Public Health Department declined an interview request Monday.
