The economy may be in the tank, but some people are still willing to pay hundreds of dollars to look good. And so Allergan’s Botox - the controversial wrinkle remover - apparently remains an appealing expenditure. As one dermatologist tells The Wall Street Journal: “Things are so bad that investments aren’t even worthwhile anymore, so people are investing in themselves.”

Malcolm Roth, a plastic surgeon in New York City, says even people with good jobs and robust savings are worried about the future and are afraid to miss work for plastic surgery. They visit him knowing they need a facelift but instead ask if there’s “something I can do to tide them over.” The reply? Botox and fillers. “I think that’s probably something we’ll be seeing more of next year,” he tells the paper.

And patients also like the idea that with aesthetic treatments, they can pay as they go. The treatments cost Roth’s patients between $500 and $2,000 for a visit, rather than perhaps $15,000 for a facelift. “Botox lasts about four months, but if you can’t afford to come back, you don’t have to,” he says. By contrast, patients are reluctant to run up credit-card debt on a big ticket item like surgery.

In a survey this fall, nearly three out of four plastic surgeons reported demand has increased or held steady for minimally invasive procedures, including Allergan’s Botox, dermal fillers used to plump up lips and smile lines, and skin-smoothing chemical peels, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, which reps 6,700 surgeons. The survey also found a steep drop in demand for plastic surgeries ranging from breast augmentation to nose reshaping, according to the Journal.

A 41-year-old single mom, who lives in Los Angeles and works as a media and political consultant, is cutting spending and delaying a home remodeling project, but isn’t skipping her beauty injections. It’s “part of my cost of doing business,” she tells the paper. Whether this holds true for many others is unclear. The Journal notes that Allergan recently reported dermal-filler sales were up 18 percent through September, but reduced its 2008 Botox sales guidance, citing overall “subdued demand.”