Will Icing Help Lump After Botox Injection?

Thank you for your question 6741 anon. I understand your concern. Botox is a purified protein used to address wrinkles associated with facial expression. When injected into the skin Botox will relax the muscles and smoothen out the overlying wrinkles. The most common areas of treatment are in the upper face. These include the horizontal lines seen on the upper forehead when one raises the brows, the vertical lines seen between the brows when one frowns (frown lines), and the crow's feet seen around the eyes when one smiles.It is difficult to make an assessment without a formal exam where the entire medical history is reviewed. However, I hope the information provided here is useful.The appearance of frown lines is variable from person to person. Usually they are in a vertical orientation but sometimes they can be oblique and sometimes a horizontal line is seen across the upper portion of the nasal bridge. The most common variation is to have two parallel lines, hence the common term "11's" to describe them. But some people have one, three, or more lines. Some people also will see a bulge in the area when contracting the muscle. This bulge is smoothened out after a Botox treatment.The pivotal studies used 20 units of Botox in the glabella area between the brow to address the frown lines. These studies demonstrated that the peak results are seen 14 days after the treatment and most people enjoy their results for 3-4 months. At that point, a maintenance treatment is recommended. While some people start to see results as early as the next day, it can take two weeks for full results so patience is important. We have our patients return two weeks after their treatment to assess their results via photographs. At that time additional units may be added if necessary.The safety record of Botox is well established. The product has been used for over 20 years for a variety of treatments with minimal side effects. Botox is amongst the safest treatments for treating facial wrinkles.With any injection, there are risks such as pain, bleeding, bruising, redness, swelling, tenderness, and infection. We take special precautions to minimize these risks such as using a painless technique. We also treat bruises with a laser as early as the next day. Bruises usually resolve within two weeks if untreated. After a laser treatment bruises usually resolve in 1-3 days, but may still take two weeks for full resolution. In addition to these risks, with Botox there is also a risk that the product spreads or diffuses to nearby structures. Spread to nearby muscles can lead to side effects such as the temporary appearance of droopy eyelids or a temporary asymmetric smile.Immediately after placing the product in the skin, a small lump can be seen at the site. This is the liquid from the product and resolves on its own. In our office we provide ice packs that can be applied for 5 minutes on and off to speed this up.
After a Botox treatment, I recommend that my patients avoid heat exposure, alcohol consumption, and strenuous exercise for 24 hours and not lie down flat for four hours. This is because all of these activities may possibly lead to the movement of the product and consequent side effects such as droopy eyelids. Although there have been no definitive studies shown that these actually occur and some physicians do not provide such aftercare instructions, in the absence of data I err on the side of caution and recommend that my patients avoid such activities.

Please consult with a doctor for specific recommendations. Good luck!

This is an interesting question. It depends on the cause of the lump. Sometimes you get a lump from swelling or bruising from the injection and in that case, the ice will help. However, sometimes the lump might be caused from the BOTOX working only on a certain area and results then need to be refined by injecting the product into a different muscle.

When the product is injected into one muscle, that muscle becomes thicker, and a lump can form from the muscle contracting. If this is the case, then treating the lump itself with BOTOX will help. It is always good to check with your doctor to get the lump checked. But, it is also very important to go to a doctor who is well trained in injecting BOTOX and has a great reputation. These physicians will be able to diagnose the cause and treat the lump properly. For more information on BOTOX visit my website.