Be Very Careful About Who You Let Inject Botox

Botox is a wonderful treatment when in the right hands. However, you can have disastrous, although temporary, problems if you are not injected properly. It is my feeling that Botox should never be injected around the mouth. The effect of Botox is to paralyze muscles. This effect is advantageous in the forehead and around the eyes since these muscles cause wrinkles when contracted and do not contribute significantly to facial function. However, even if you are not injected properly in these areas, you can have problems. The muscles in the cheeks and around the mouth have important functions such as talking and eating. Unfortunately, you have found this out the hard way. Also, unfortunately, there is no way to remove the Botox now that it has been injected. On the bright side, Botox is always temporary. However, you may have a few months ahead of you that are difficult. One thing to keep in mind is that only surgeons see these muscles from the inside out on a daily basis and have an intimate understanding of their functions. In the future, I would highly recommend going to a surgeon for your injections.

I hope this is helpful.

David Shafer, MD
Shafer Plastic Surgery
New York City
www.DoctorShafer.com

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Botox is an excellent product if used properly. Usually Botox is administered by a well trained physician. Please remember that an aesthetician is legally not allowed to give you an injection of Botox. Nurses are allowed to give injections, but proper training and experience is required to do the procedure properly and effectively.

Botox injections around the mouth are very tricky and should not be taken lightly. In addition to the problems you described, drooling can also occur. Another tricky area is treating around the eyes. Poor technique can lead to drooping of the upper eyelid.

Based on your description, it appears that you may have received the wrong dose of Botox in the wrong areas. When treating wrinkles around the mouth, very small amounts should be used in proper areas, especially in the lower lip and chin.

I have seen patients with complaints similar to yours, and usually it is because they were treated by a poorly trained individual. As stated above, I have even seen a patient who had developed drooling following Botox injections in the lower lip and chin.

Unfortunately, at this point you will have to wait until the effect of Botox wears off. This can take up to three months or more. So be patient.

The best advise I can give you is to see a well trained and experienced physician for your next treatment.

Always remember that a cosmetic procedure is a service, not a product. With a product, once you know the model number, you can shop around for price. However, with a service, your result can be very variable depending on the person providing the service (even though the service carries the same name).

It is regretful that you had a bad experience. Hopefully you will recover quickly and use this as a learning experience before undergoing your next procedure.

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