Can Smile Lines Be Treated with Botox?

Since Botox relaxes muscles, it is not good to use for smile lines because it would affect your ability to smile!  So, fillers are usually the best solution for these lines, like Restylane or Juvederm.  Lasers may also be utilized in some cases. 

By injecting a small amount of Botox, Dysport, Xeomin, or Jeuveau into this area, the muscles will relax, causing the hard, deeps lines to smooth and improving the lines and wrinkles. Neuromodulators take 2 to 4 weeks to start working and lasts for up to six months. I suggest getting a formal evaluation with a cosmetic dermatologist. Best, Dr. Emer

Botox is commonly used to treat the smile lines around the eyes also known as Crows Feet.  The lines that form around the mouth are best treated with dermal fillers.

Thank you for your question. Botox can help with the smile lines, but I is important to define where the lines are. Some patients refer to the crows feet (outer eye skin) as smile lines and Botox is very effective here. Some refer to the nasolabial folds as the smile lines. Fillers are much more effective here and Botox is not.

If the wrinkles at the corners of your eyes appear only when you make a facial expression, like smiling, then Botox would be more suitable. Botox treats "dynamic" wrinkles.Fillers would be better for you because the wrinkles are visible even when your face is in a neutral expression. This means that they are "static" wrinkles, and fillers is the right treatment to smooth them away.

 When patients smile, lines of animation
occur throughout the face. These lines occur primarily in the peri-orbital and
peri-oral regions. When smile lines occur around the eyes, they are commonly
known as crow’s feet. Smile lines that occur around the mouth or also known as
laugh lines. These lines have different causes and therefore require different
treatments.

 Crow’s feet occur because of
contractions of the orbicularis oculi musculw which results in wrinkles at the
outer corner of the eye. These expression lines are effectively treated with botox.
This treatment is associated with excellent clinical results and high levels of
patient satisfaction.

 In contrast botox isn't effective for
treating laugh lines. These lines are more effectively treated with injectable
dermal fillers. When this approach is utilized patients report high level of
satisfaction.

If you're
concerned about these problems, it's important to consult a physician with
experience with injectable fillers and botox. This physician
should be able to formulate a plan that addresses your concerns.