Masseter Botox in Houston

The masseter is a much larger muscle than the small expression muscles we treat in the upper face, so dosing is correspondingly higher. A typical first treatment is 15 to 30 units of Jeuveau per side, depending on the muscle bulk I feel on exam.

Patients with strong clenching often need the higher end of the range. Patients seeking subtle jawline slimming usually do well at the lower end. We tailor at the visit.

The functional effect (less clenching, less morning jaw soreness) starts within 7 to 14 days of treatment. The cosmetic effect of jaw slimming develops more slowly. As the muscle is consistently relaxed over weeks, it gradually atrophies (gets smaller). Visible jawline narrowing usually shows up at the 6 to 8 week mark and continues to develop with repeat treatments at 4 to 6 month intervals.

Patients who want a meaningful change in jawline width should plan on at least 2 to 3 treatments over a year. A single treatment produces some softening but is not the dramatic before-after you see in some marketing material.

For patients coming in primarily for clenching or grinding, the relief from masseter neurotoxin is often immediate-feeling: less tension when you wake up, less jaw fatigue at the end of the day, fewer tension headaches. The dental community has been using this approach for years.

It is not a replacement for a properly fitted night guard if your grinding is wearing your teeth. It is a complement. I tell most of my bruxism patients to keep using the night guard while we treat the masseters.

• Some temporary chewing fatigue, especially with tough foods, in the first 2 to 3 weeks.
• Rare paradoxical bulging on smiling if injection is too superficial - we use proper technique to avoid this.
• Very rare temporary asymmetry of smile if neurotoxin migrates into other facial muscles - again, technique-dependent.
• The bruxism effect wears off as the neurotoxin wears off, so if the muscle is treated, the clenching tends to return at the same intensity unless we maintain.