Botox Pullman, WA

At Marcus Torrey, DDS, we provide Botox as a very safe and effective way to address some of the effects of facial aging.

It has been used for over 2 decades for a variety of medical and esthetic issues including reversing the effects of facial wrinkles, migraine headaches and more recently approved for clenching and grinding teeth.

Treatment of dynamic lines such as Crow’s feet, forehead lines and furrowing brows can be predictably and safely treated by micro injection into the small muscles of facial expression.

Clenching and grinding can be reduced by injecting some of the larger muscles that are used to chew and crush food that are often hyperactive in the bruxing (grinding) patient.

Botox Procedure

To better understand your overall health and wishes, we will evaluate your facial muscles and identify the areas to inject.

Full photographs will be taken to map your facial muscles and again 10-14 days later we will take post photos. It is not unusual to ‘touch-up’ areas that did not respond or were not injected on the initial appointment.

We are very careful to document all areas that were treated to develop a clear and accurate plan for follow-up visits.

Typically, the effect of Botox lasts 3-4 months and often the efficacy lengths improve with time. Botox is never permanent.

Botox cannot address resting folds and sagging areas; these are managed with fillers.

If we are managing bruxism, we want to be certain that you are not experiencing and upper airway resistance syndrome (UARS) or obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Both conditions often come with a bruxism component that helps open the compromised airway while sleeping and are a beneficial strategy your body does reflexively to help maintain a patent airway during sleep.

Post-Injection

Following Botox injection, we ask that you not lay down for 2 hours to minimize moving the Botox around.

It is also helpful not to touch or rub the area to minimize its dispersal. Occasionally there will be very minimal localized bruising that will dissipate within a few days.

Potential side effects are rare and the most concerning is that of eyebrow droop aka Ptosis.

Eyebrow droop is the result of the Botox entering below your eyebrow and affecting the eyelid muscle. It will improve with time (up to 4 months) but is always temporary.

Variations in anatomy and individuals with deeply seated eyes are at highest risk.

Contraindication for Botox

There exist only a handful of systemic diseases that prohibit the use of botulinum toxin including:

• Keloidal scarring
• Neuromuscular disorders (e.g., myasthenia gravis)
• Allergy to components of the Botox (human serum albumin)
• Pregnancy or breast feeding
• Body dysmorphic disorder
• and unrealistic expectations to name a few.