Botox Treatments Lead to Botulism (Is Anyone Really Surprised?)

From today's New York Post

Two couples are hospitalized in critical condition with botulism poisoning after undergoing Botox wrinkle-removing injections at a Florida clinic, health officials said yesterday.

All four people are on ventilators and being fed intravenously -- one couple in Florida and the other in New Jersey, where they had gone to visit relatives for Thanksgiving, said Palm Beach County Health Department spokesman Tim O'Connor.

Test results are expected on Thursday from the federal Centers for Disease Control, which is leading the investigation of the four cases in conjunction with the federal Food and Drug Administration.

Botox manufacturer Allergan said it is cooperating with health officials.

Botulism is a rare and potentially fatal paralytic illness caused by the botulinium toxin, which is found in contaminated food. Botox is a purified derivative of the botulinium toxin that is used as a muscle relaxant and an anti-wrinkle drug.