Botox

What is Botox?

Botox is a neuromodulator that relaxes the muscles where it’s injected. Thanks to its powerful ability, Botox has several applications today. The most popular use for Botox is cosmetic, as it can smooth fine lines and wrinkles in your upper face area.

However, another use for Botox that’s not quite as well known, but just as powerful, is jaw pain treatment. Rifkin Dental is proud to offer Botox in both areas.

How Does Botox Help Relieve Jaw Pain?

When your dentist injects Botox into your jaw area, it decreases the muscle strain that makes you clench and grind your teeth. With these key muscles relaxed, you may enjoy significantly less jaw pain, and often a reduction in headaches as well. Botox is also sometimes used as a migraine treatment. When injected in head and neck trigger points, Botox relaxes the muscles and can dramatically reduce migraine frequency.

The effects of Botox injections in the jaw can last at least three months, and some patients experience relief for much longer than that. If you want continued jaw pain relief, work with your dentist at Rifkin Dental to determine the right intervals for maintenance visits.

What Cosmetic Issues Can Botox Address?

Botox can help with wrinkles in a few different places in your upper face. The most frequently treated areas include:

• Forehead: long horizontal lines above your eyebrows
• Glabellar area: the vertical lines between your brows
• Crow’s-feet: the crinkle-type lines on the sides of your eyes

It’s common to develop lines in all three of these places as you age because your skin loses elasticity over time. You can have treatment in one or more of these areas during your Botox appointment.

Botox injections can effectively reduce wrinkles for three to four months in most cases, but some patients enjoy the benefits for up to six months or more.

What Should I Expect During a Botox Appointment?

Most patients tolerate Botox injections extremely well. Your provider at Rifkin Dental uses a very slim needle for the injections, and usually, an entire Botox treatment session only takes around 10 minutes. Your provider can apply a topical anesthetic or use ice packs to relieve any discomfort you may have.

If you’re ready to get rid of facial lines, jaw pain, or both, use the online appointment tool to schedule your appointment now or call the office today.