Masseter Muscle Botox – Reshape Your Jaw Without Surgery
BOTOX® Cosmetic for Masseter Muscle Enables Jawline Slimming Without Surgery
Most people don’t associate their jawline with aging or any sort of cosmetic concern. When they think of an aged-face, they think wrinkles. They think fine lines. Particularly the frown lines in the middle of the forehead – right above the nose- or the crow’s feet around the eyes.
But a younger face tends to be the widest around the eyes and the narrowest near the jaw and chin. As we get older, our faces square off or become wider at the jawline. This can first be observed between the ages of 20-and-40-years-old. Not even a particularly advanced age.
This is a concern for many women that notice this transformation in the mirror. Especially since the ideal female face is often thought of as delicate, oval-shaped and smoothly contoured. Because of this, many desire a heart shaped face. A squaring-off, or a widening of the lower face and jawline, creates a fuller more masculine, not feminine, look.
Why Is My Jawline Getting Wider?
The masseter muscle, which is the muscle we chew with, has an often-understated but profound influence on facial appearance.
This muscle works just like another other muscle in the body. It can be “worked out” and can “bulk up.” The more the masseter muscle “exercises” and contracts, the bigger the muscle gets. This can leave someone with an over-developed chewing muscle and a less desirable square face.
For some, this square, wider-looking face is an inevitable result of the masseter muscle thickening and becoming more prominent from decades of chewing, grinding their teeth (bruxism), clenching their jaw, or dental problems. Certain habits like frequent and excessive gum chewing can also accentuate masseter size over time.
For others, genetics play a role in this masseter muscle hypertrophy. This is more common among Koreans, the Chinese, and other southeast Asians who seem to be genetically predisposed to a thicker masseter and shorter, wider faces.
Masseter Muscle Injections for Jawline Slimming
In the past, surgery was the only option for anyone wanting to reshape their lower jaw. Jawline reduction was an invasive procedure where the jawbone was literally shaved down. With surgery always comes the risk of complications like pain, infection, facial nerve paralysis, and difficulty opening the mouth. Jawline reduction surgery, while popular in Korea, involved a significant recovery time and an unnatural look where the angle of the jawbone was no longer visible.
Thankfully, we’ve since found that injecting BOTOX® Cosmetic or Dysport directly into the masseter muscle helps contour the jawline and slim the face. The injection of botulinum toxin type A into the masseter muscle is a highly effective, cost-efficient, non-surgical means to reduce the lower face and jawline’s width and shape.
Similarly to how Dysport and BOTOX® work for wrinkle reduction, the injection relaxes the muscles of the injected area. Sudden, involuntary, muscle contractions (muscle spasms) can not occur.
How Can Dysport and BOTOX® Reduce the Size of My Jaw?
These injections weaken the injected muscle over time. Think of BOTOX® as a relaxing temporary vacation for the muscle. A relaxed masseter muscle thins out. The aesthetic effect is a reduction in the flared or enlarged nature of the jawline. Within a week or two, most patients notice their jawline feels softer when they bite down and touch it. A more rounded jawline is usually noticeable within six weeks.
Masseter muscle injections should be repeated every 3 to 6 months to maintain the result. However, after multiple sessions, upkeep can be spaced out to 9 to 12 month intervals.
Who Is an Appropriate Candidate for Masseter BOTOX®?
Masseter BOTOX® or Dysport injections are highly beneficial to patients who would like to narrow and angulate the lower face. Particularly anyone who doesn’t like the shape of their face due to a square or thick jawline and desires a more feminine look.
The relative thickness of someone’s masseter muscle can be determined by feeling their outer jawline as they bite down hard. If it is rock hard, or it appears enlarged as their teeth are clenched, that person is a good candidate for masseter muscle injections.
Many people who grind or clench their teeth may experience TMJ or Bruxism and can certainly benefit from Dysport or BOTOX® injections for masseter muscle hypertrophy.
People who suffer from migraines or tension headaches from teeth grinding can also benefit from masseter muscle BOTOX® or Dysport treatments. This is because a relaxed masseter muscle helps reduce overall tension in the face.
Masseter muscle injections are very popular in Asia and China. In fact, this is where the procedure was discovered and first came into prominence.
Both men and women can be good candidates for this procedure.
Interested in Masseter BOTOX® IN Pittsburgh?
Dr. Paul Leong at Leong Facial Plastic Surgery can administer Dysport and BOTOX® to the masseter muscle for jawline slimming at any of our six locations in the region. If you’d like to schedule a consultation to determine if you’re a good candidate for masseter BOTOX® in Pittsburgh, PA, contact us today.