“Botox for Reducing Masseter Muscle Made Me Look Jowly - Vancouver, BC”

Gosh, I'm really sorry to hear that! What did your doc say about it? Could one of the Trueself docs chime in with some info? I'm assuming that, when the botox wears off, I'll regain the volume lost in the masseter area and all will be normal again--am I wrong?

Brit--it's actually not an allergic reaction. Truetotype and I are suffering these symptoms because our doctors either incorrectly determined the injection site (my doctor injected my buccinator muscle by accident, though this is as much my fault as his. I didn't realise my masseters were still so weak from my first treatment in september '10 because of my body dysmorphia. I didnt realise my face was already too thin. Inexperienced doctors are told to ask the patient to bite down and then inject whichever bulging points in the jaw are visible. Obviously this is extremely inaccurate and had my doctor had a solid understanding of facial anatomy/the decency to refuse to treat me [aka take my money] because of my somewhat obvious obsession with my face/the fact that my masseters were still so weak, this would not have happened. My masseters were so weak that they could not move, therefore couldn't flex and bulge. Only my buccinator muscle could. So, he injected that instead) or the botox may have been correctly placed in truetotype's case, but it spread into and affected her buccinator muscles. The buccinator and masseter hold in the Buccal fat pad. Normally, as we age, our muscles waste and the Buccal fat pad descends from it's youthful position into what we call "peri-oral mounds" and later, jowls. Since I'm only 19 my fat pad luckily only descended into the peri-oral mound area (this is the area on either side of the corners of our lips--peri-oral mounds are very noticeable when talking or smiling, but almost undetectable when relaxed. Since I'm only affected on one side, my smile is crooked and half my face lacks the definition it used to have). This complication is referred to as a "pseudoherniation of the Buccal fat pad." You may have heard of victims of "pseudoherniation of the peri-orbital fat pad." This frequently occurs when botox is incorrectly placed or spreads around the eye, thus paralysing the delicate muscles that hold that fat pad in. I've scanned these message boards for those patients' stories, and most of their complications seem to have resolved after 9-12 months, so this gives me great hope. The only problem is that the muscles found in the jaw are composed differently than those found in the eye, and seem to be much more reactive to Botox treatment. This is why they atrophy within weeks and why the eye muscles never reduce in size (at least to a noticeable degree). So, we two patients will are truly experiencing an entirely unknown and unfortunate undocumented complication of Botox treatment.

I've included so much information here because I've done 4 months of intense research and I want truetotype to understand exactly what is happening because I dont want her to seek any sort of surgical treatment for her new jowls. This may resolve on it's own and if so, she will look over-corrected. I do NOT want to I instill the same obsession I have with this complication in her. My obsession is unhealthy to the point of debilitating. I feel really embarrassed and sorry that I included so many of my raw emotions in my last post. It's just that I have so many happy things in my life and yet all I can ever think about is this. If this does resolve, I will be so grateful for the natural beauty I possess and will never again take that for granted. I can only hope that my obsessive research can help you and others. I just want to help.

*patients, not parents.

By the way I never asked you...are the jowls on both sides? My complication is unilateral. Also, how many units did you get in each side at each time?

Hi oncebeautiful, I have had one Accent treatment so far (you have to space them out about a month) and I'm very happy with it. I go to a derm office for it, although it's performed by a aesthetician, and the procedure takes almost an hour. I mention this I've read some accounts of ten-minute sessions at spas that haven't worked. I see definite improvement after one treatment and am excited to see the results after I have two more.

I've been looking at Sculptra as a possible solution lately. Originally used to treat facial wasting ing AIDS patients, it causes the face to build more collagen and can be injected anywhere. Thoughts?

ALTHOUGH i have to add: i started chewing gum on the side that was affected (this masseter was always bigger) and now my masseters are asymmetrical again. FML. You really can't win. The problem, despite my masseters gaining what seems to be full functionality (I can flex them again) this complication is not entirely reversed, which affirms my theory that my dr. hit a muscle other than the masseter. some muscle in the cheek that is responsible for lifting the apple of the cheek...there are SO MANY facial muscles though! it's unnerving to try to theorise which one might be suffering right now

also scary: a three-year study of patients who underwent botox treatment to the masseter showed continued "bone remodeling" way after the botox was supposed to "go away." Meaning, our jawbones are weakening and becoming less dense (cosmetically disintegrating). Fun with neurotoxins...

KitteNYC and True2Type, It is Feb. 11, 2012... where do each of you stand at this point? Your last posts are dated 10/20/11. Has this problem been resolved; has your face returned to normal? I had a little botox in my chin about 3 weeks ago and now my smile is messed up. I, like so many people who have used botox (now that I have read these posts) just want my face and my smile back. Help!