Botox or otherwise, a successful aesthetics treatment does more than simply boost or hide the visibility of certain features in a vacuum. There’s a reason why the field’s most talented practitioners refer to aesthetics as part art, part science—and facial symmetry is a key component in mastering that balance.
Every patient presents a unique set of features that need to be accounted for when designing beauty treatments. What works for one patient may be too much or too little of a change to blend in with the unique facial geometry and facial symmetry of another patient.
At Glam Aesthetics, we carefully assess each patient’s unique features to provide subtly beautiful changes that work with—not against—said features. Botox is an excellent tool for this, restoring aesthetic balance to provide individualized results that work for each patient.
In this overview, we will explore how Botox can enhance facial symmetry for patients presenting with various concerns. First and foremost, what exactly is Botox?
Botox 101
Botox is short for botulinum toxin, a compound produced by a strain of bacteria known as Clostridium botulinum. The mechanism by which Botox injections reduce the appearance of fine lines involves blocking the transmission of nerve signals to underlying muscle tissue. The temporarily denervated muscle, now unable to contract, can help lessen the appearance of crow’s feet, glabellar lines, and other instances of fine lines.
Botox can also inhibit unwanted muscle activation in the case of cervical dystonia (for which Botox is FDA approved), Bell’s palsy, and other issues.
Botox is injected directly into the targeted facial muscle(s). Since these muscles are typically very small, and since the preserving tissue is left unaffected, providers are able to accurately target fine lines and spasms without giving the face a “wooden” or expressionless appearance.
Many people have trusted Botox since the early 2000s as a staple of their anti-aging regimen, using it to treat the following issues and areas with cosmetic enhancements:
- Forehead lines
- Crow’s feet
- Frown lines
- Bunny lines
- Eyebrows
- Jawline
- Lazy eye
- Twitching eye
Botox is also indicated for a number of less aesthetically relevant issues throughout the body, including migraines, overactive bladder, upper limb spasticity, and gastrointestinal problems.
More Than a Wrinkle Reducer: Botox and Facial Symmetry
Whether they result from a condition, injury, or simply time, facial asymmetries can affect virtually every facial feature, including the lips, masseter muscles, eyes and eyebrows, nose, and more.
When these asymmetries are not of the appropriate nature or severity to merit more intensive options like reconstructive and/or cosmetic surgery, Botox is an excellent way to subtly pull everything back into a more symmetrical alignment.
Here is a non-exhaustive selection of some of the most common facial asymmetries that our expert team at Glam Aesthetics can treat with Botox:
Uneven eyebrows: Sometimes, an overactive frontalis muscle—which primarily raises the eyebrow—on one side of the face can cause one eyebrow to appear higher than the other. Botox can relax the frontalis muscle, allowing the elevated eyebrow to drop into a more natural and symmetrical alignment. The same goes for muscles under the eyebrows which may pull an eyebrow down.
Asymmetrical masseter muscles: Using one side of your jaw more than the other can cause the masseter, a powerful muscle responsible for chewing, to grow larger on that side. This fix can be complicated, but when implemented correctly, Botox can relax the affected side for long enough to cause just enough atrophy (decreasing a muscle’s size) to match the unaffected side. This is an excellent facial contouring treatment.
Bell’s palsy: This rare condition is characterized by weakness or paralysis of the muscles on one side of the face, resulting in a drooping appearance of that entire side. In this case, Botox can strategically be applied to the unaffected side of the face to relax the features in such a way that minimizes the visual disparity between the two halves.
Elvis lip: It may have been a classic signature of “the King’s” appearance, but for the rest of us, an asymmetrically hiked-up lip can give the unwelcoming appearance of a permanent snarl. Like the eyebrow issue, Elvis lip is often caused by an overactive levator labii superioris alaeque nasi muscle (bit of a mouthful there). Botox allows the elevated side of the upper lip to settle back into a neater alignment with the rest of the mouth.
Who Is Eligible for Botox?
Focusing more on the aesthetics side of Botox, this facial symmetry treatment is suitable for a wide range of complaints, including many instances of fine lines and disturbed aesthetic balance. As a nonsurgical symmetry treatment, Botox is safe and effective for most people, but your eligibility may still be affected by the following factors:
- Pregnancy
- Breastfeeding
- Certain respiratory disorders
- Neuromuscular disease
- Active infections
- Bleeding disorders
It’s also important to note that Botox is not intended to dramatically restructure the face, but is rather used as a way of providing non-surgical correction of certain issues to provide cosmetic enhancements. Hence, expectation management is an important aspect of a successful treatment plan.
Achieve Balanced, Natural-Looking Results With Botox by Glam Aesthetics of Atlanta and Carrollton, GA
An expert in dermal fillers with more than 20 years of experience in the aesthetics field, Julie Krochonis, MSN, AGNP-C of Glam Aesthetics is committed to enhancing your unique features with trusted injectable solutions like Botox.
As your provider, our team will carefully craft a customized treatment plan that’s fully centered around your input and your presentation.
Contact Glam Aesthetics for a consultation today and experience the difference in quality for yourself.
