It is more celebrity than respiratory, but botox could prove a breath of fresh air for asthmatics if an Australian trial of the toxin launched on Wednesday is successful.

Botox, or botulinum toxin type A, is usually used to smooth wrinkles by temporarily paralysing the muscles around the eyes and brow, but researchers at Melbourne’s Monash University believe it could also be used to ease asthma. Phil Bardin, director of respiratory medicine at the Monash Medical Centre, is preparing to test botox injections into the voiceboxes of severe asthmatics after the jabs were shown to be successful in curing vocal exhaustion. A recent Monash study found half of severe asthmatics had voicebox problems similar to vocal cord dysphonia, suffered by those who have lost their voice through overuse and a condition which botox has been proven able to fix. “We’ve discovered that in many of these patients they seem to have not only asthma of their lung but also of their voicebox,” Dr Bardin said.