Would Botox in my Eyebrows Affect How Wide I Can Open my Eyes?

Question

I'm interested in getting botox to lower my eyebrows, however I was wondering if this procedure would affect how wide I can open my eyes?

Ron Shelton, MD · Answer

unless there is a very unusual condition such as overcompensation of forehead muscles after botox injection for other muscles, botox is not used to drop eyebrows. Unless the eyebrows are elevated for you compared to your baseline, the botox injected to lower your eyebrows may lower your eyelid as well as the eyebrows do help hold up the upper eyelid. You may indeed, find that you can't open your eyelids enough. It may be difficult to apply eyeshadow without manually using one hand to lift the eyebrow and smoothen out the upper eyelid skin while the other hand is applying the eyeshadow. If the botox is injected in the forehead to lower the eyebrow, and is injected too close to the eyebrow, it may cause a droop of the upper eyelid by weakening the levator muscle and this can last a few months. You need to be examined by an expert in botox injections who understands the facial anatomy and can determine what your situation is. This only can be done best in an in-person consultation to examine the muscles at rest and with movement.

Andrew P. Trussler, MD · Answer

Botox can be injected in multiple different patterns in the eyebrow in order to shape the eyebrow. I inject Botox in multiple different patterns depending on what my patients want and how their eyebrows react to botox. Botox can be injected in a pattern to lift and lower the eyebrow. The finesse of Botox can really be appreciated when you bounce around and experience different injectors and their technique. I have multiple patients who can't get in to see me and they go to other injectors and get their eyebrows mal-positioned. Injection technique is truly an art and really takes a significant amount of experience between you and your Botox Injector. Botox in the eyebrow can help lower the eyebrow and can affect how wide you can open your eyes if it limits you lifting your eyebrows or causes a droopy eyelid. This can all be controlled with proper technique, so you should see an injector who has the confidence and the ability to individually shape the eyebrow. Please let me know if you have questions. Dr. Trussler

John Bitner, MD · Answer

I must admit, I've never injected botox intending to "lower" the eyebrows. Usually, we try to stay high enough on the forehead to keep from dropping the brow. The closer you get to the brow, the higher risk of accidentally or, in your case, purposely dropping the brow. As you get really close to the brow, another potential side effect is to cause weakening of the muscle that lifts the eyelid. This can cause drooping of the eyelid, something known as ptosis. This side effect is relatively rare (has happened to me once out of hundreds and hundreds of injections) but that risk might a little higher if you are intending to drop the brow. If you had ptosis, it would effect how widely you can open your eyes.

Kenneth D. Steinsapir, MD · Answer

It is very likely that if you were successful in having someone so freeze your forehead that your eyebrows fell, the head of the eyebrows might actually be more crowded. Over toxing the glabellar area is reported to cause a spread of the eyebrows. However, for most this effect is barely noticeable.

David Shafer, MD, FACS · Answer

Without pictures or seeing you in person, it is impossible to answer whether you are a good candidate for Botox.  Additionally, I would need to see you animating as Botox works on dynamic (moving) muscles.  With that said, Botox can be used to help contour the eyebrows but you should be injected by an experienced injector.  Also, treating just one area of the face can throw off the balance.  You should treat the crow's feet area, glabella area and forehead to maintain facial harmony and balance.

	 

	Good Luck.

Scott Trimas, MD · Answer

Botox can be used to either elevate or depress the eyebrow height depending upon the places where it is injected. A side effect of botox is ptosis which is lowering of the eyelid itself if it is not injected properly or if it diffuses into the wrong position. I would make sure you go to someone with experience in placing botox into different locations.

Robert Brueck, MD · Answer

This can be done.It should not effect the ability to open your eyes but the botox can migrate and cause soem droopy eyelids but this is not usual.

Michael Bowman, MD · Answer

You pose an interesting question, as I usually use Botox to give a little brow lift, rather than lower the eyebrows.  Before you consider getting some Botox to lower your brows (it can be done) I would have a consultation  with a good facial plastic surgeon in order to analyze your appearance.  In general, few people will benefit from a lowering of the brows, as it tends to make the face look more tired.  It may be that your best results would involve some other technique to get the look you desire. The one exception that comes to mind is if you had an overly aggressive brow lift already.  In this case you might benefit from further procedures, but Botox probably won't do much to really lower the brow complex.

	That being said, for an un-operated face,  Botox could be used to lower the brows. You certainly would be at risk for an excessive heaviness of the eyelids and potentially some ptosis (which is droopiness of the upper eyelid).  This would likely wear off with time, but probably is not worth the risk.

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

Most patients want their eyebrow raised or kept in the same position as opposed to lowering them. But Botox may affect opening the eyes wide because if the forehead is treated then commonly the frontalis muscle which lifts the brow may be blocked.

Robert L. Kraft, MD, FACS · Answer

This is a new question--most patients want to use Botox to elevate their brows and have a fresher, more youthful appearance.  Without photographs, it is impossible to evaluate the reason you want this treatment and whether it would be appropriate.

Would Botox in my Eyebrows Affect How Wide I Can Open my Eyes?

Answers (12)

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