If you want to smooth away facial wrinkles and fine lines, Botox® is your best friend. Botox, which is short for Botulinum toxin A, works by temporarily immobilizing or weakening the muscles near those nasty wrinkles. But it does so much more, including treating chronic migraines and a number of dental issues.
In our dental practice, we use Botox for a variety of therapeutic and cosmetic dental procedures. Here are five things we’d like you to know about dental Botox:
Dentists are uniquely qualified to administer Botox
According to the American Academy of Facial Esthetics, an estimated 16% of dentists have incorporated Botox into their practices for both cosmetic and therapeutic uses. As dentists, we regularly give injections to numb patients. With proper training in dental Botox, dentists are probably the most adept at providing Botox treatments for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes than any other healthcare professionals.
State dental boards across the United States seem to agree. According to the American Academy of Facial Esthetics, almost half the states in the country have granted dentists the permission to perform Botox injections in all of the oral and maxillofacial areas.
Botox can treat tooth and jaw issues
Botox can be used to treat a variety of dental issues, such as teeth clenching and grinding, abnormally large jaw muscles, and jaw muscle spasms. It can even be used to relax your jaw muscles so that dental implants can heal and set properly.
If you ever suffered from the jaw pain and headaches caused by teeth clenching, we know you’ll appreciate the relief dental Botox brings as a helper and healer for dental treatments.
It is less invasive than oral surgery
The beauty of dental Botox is that it provides a less invasive solution for conditions like gummy smiles. In many cases, the treatment for gummy smile is to surgically sever the muscles of the upper lip or carve away some of the gum tissue. With dental Botox we can treat the condition without cutting into healthy tissue and muscle.
Although the effects last about four months, maintenance injections are less of a hassle than surgery. With dental Botox, the condition will be treated quickly, and you’ll see results. Sometimes less is really more.
Botox can beautify your smile
As dentists, our goal is always to help our patients obtain and maintain a healthy smile. In addition to gummy smiles and lip deformities, one of the greatest aesthetic dental challenges we face as dentists is a common condition known as black triangles. These are obvious triangular spaces between your teeth at the gumline which the gums don’t fill. Botox can be injected in the gums to plump out the area and close up the unsightly gap. Talk about the ultimate dental assistant!
It can help you feel and look your best
Botox is an amazing tool dentists can use to help you look and feel your best. Its cosmetic and therapeutic uses enable us to provide a quick, less invasive way to tackle issues and complement the many services we can offer you. Armed with a healthy smile, you can’t help but to feel ready to take on the world.
If you’d like to find out if dental Botox can help you, contact the caring, professional dental team. Book your appointment online or call the office today.
