When the stars walk down the red carpet on Oscar night, they know that the eyes of the world are upon them, so they want to look their best. Traditionally this meant designer gowns, amazing jewelry, and an afternoon spent in the hands of hair and makeup gurus. Nowadays, in addition to all of that, the morning schedule on Oscar day often includes a visit to the plastic surgeon for a little Botox or collagen work. So not only are the eyes of the word on the stars, but maybe also a bit of toxins or harvested proteins.



Botox treatments for erasing the fine lines seem to be the procedure of choice on the red carpet. Botox treatments are simply small doses of botulism toxin injected in the face to paralyze the muscles that cause crow's feet and furrowed brows. Injections cost a mere $400 each and can take a few days to take effect. They last five to six months.

It is amazing the lengths stars will go for beauty. According to HowStuffWork (www.howstuffworks.com) "Botulism is a form of food poisoning that occurs when someone eats something containing a neurotoxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. Botulinum toxin A is one of the neurotoxins produced by Clostridium botulinum. The most serious symptom of botulism is paralysis, which in some cases has proven to be fatal."

Some stars opt to have their lips and wrinkles injected with Dermologin, a corpse harvested human collagen. If you are interested in having the procedure but don't have the bankroll to support it, don't despair. Some plastic surgeons, like Beverly Hills based dermatologist Simon Ourian, offers an annual Oscar wrinkle blasting sale.

Dr. Anthony Griffin of ABC's "Extreme Makeover" and a Beverly Hills-based cosmetic surgeon reports that all of the little Oscar fixes he provides to the elite of Hollywood add up to quite a bit of extra work.

During Oscar season, Griffin has been busy doing light peels and spot liposuction, much of the latter "driven by what they are going to wear."

Julia Roberts gets collagen, Ren'e Zellweger gets skin resurfacing and Michael Douglas gets everything. Charlize Theron is the exception.

"She's gorgeous. I can't think of anything she needs," Says Griffin.

While he does work on many stars, there are a few he would like to get his hands on.

"I would like to get Robert Redford in to get his skin rejuvenated. He looks awful," Griffin says. "His skin is very distracting to me."