8 Things You Didn’t Know You Can Do With Anti-Wrinkle Injections

Anti-wrinkle injections are one of the most popular injectable treatments in Australia. What most people don’t realise is that they can do a lot more than wrinkle-reduction, both cosmetically and medically. Here are eight uses for anti-wrinkle injections we bet you didn’t know about before.

Muscle Slimming

This is a treatment that takes time for results to show, but it does work. When a muscle is out of use for a long period of time, it shrinks. With a slightly higher volume of anti-wrinkle injections, a muscle can be relaxed enough to grow smaller. This is one method used for patients who want a slimmer, less rounded face.

Fun fact: the masseter muscle (the one that works your jaw) is the strongest muscle in your body. When anti-wrinkle injections are administered properly into this muscle, you can still speak and chew as per normal, but part of the muscle is relaxed enough that it starts to shrink. Over time, the masseter muscles become visibly smaller and you get a less rounded, more v-lined shape to your face.

Non-Surgical Eyebrow Lift

Not-so-fun fact: as your collagen breaks down with age, it can sometimes cause your eyebrows to sit a bit lower on your face. This is because the skin starts to sag. We often notice hooding over the eye more than the eyebrow, but if you compare photos, you might see a lower brow or less of an arch.

We sometimes also just want a little more arch to our brows, regardless of age. With a little anti-wrinkle injection in the depressor muscles above the brow, and another little injection in the muscles that pull the brows down, you can accentuate the arch in your eyebrows and give them a little bit of lift.

This method can also be used to adjust asymmetrical eyebrows.

Gummy Smile

Occasionally, a smile will give a lot of gums. Basically, certain muscles in the upper lip pull back more than they need to, so your smile shows the gums above your teeth. We love a big smile, but for those who dislike the way they look with their gums showing, we can inject just a little bit of anti-wrinkle product into the muscles above the lip. This causes the muscle to relax so that the lip doesn’t pull up as much for a more natural looking smile with pearly white teeth and hidden gums.

Bruxism

Bruxism (the technical term used for teeth-grinding) can also be treated with anti-wrinkle injection into the masseter muscle. Fewer units are used in this procedure, so you shouldn’t see the slimming effect that you would get from a facial-slimming treatment.

The anti-wrinkle product relaxes the muscle just enough so that you no longer grind and clench your jaw, but you can still speak and chew your food.

Hyperhidrosis

Also known as the sweating disorder, hyperhidrosis is characterised by excessive sweat with little cause. With regular sweating, the sweat glands perspire in response to exercise, heat or nervousness, and then they stop once the cause of the sweating is relieved. With hyperhidrosis, the glands don’t stop releasing sweat, or they produce excessive sweat for no discernible reason. About 2-3 per cent of the population experiences hyperhidrosis.

Anti-wrinkle product can be injected with a very small needle to temporarily block the signals to the sweat glands. This greatly reduces sweating and provides relief from hyperhidrosis for 4-12 months, depending on the location of the glands and how many units of anti-wrinkle product are used. The most commonly treated areas are the underarms and hands.

Witchy chin

Sometimes, the muscles beneath our mouth pull our chin forward, especially with certain facial expressions. For some people, over time, these muscles grow and the chin looks like it’s protruding. In the cosmetic industry, we refer to this as a “witchy chin.” It’s a trait we often associate with later stages of life, but in reality, it can happen at any age.

Anti-wrinkle injections can relax the muscle that pulls the chin forward to reduce the protrusion for a softer contour around the chin.

Muscle Spasms

This was the original purpose for anti-wrinkle injections. Back in the early 1990s, these injections were used in North America to treat eye spasms caused by muscles around the eye. When patients noticed that they no longer had their crows’ feet, research quickly shifted into the use of these injections for wrinkles. Their popularity as antiwrinkle treatments skyrocketed, Australians spent an estimated $350 million on anti-wrinkle injections in 2017.¹ Though the popular purpose changed, they are still also used to treat muscle spasms of the face.

Migraines

Anyone who has experienced migraines will know they can be much more than a headache. They’re often caused by artery contractions in the temples, and they can lead to throbbing pain, sensitivity to sound and light, difficulty speaking or even visual disruptions known as auras.

Similar to the treatment of muscle spasms and facial tics, anti-wrinkle injections can be used to prevent migraines by relaxing the muscles that contract the blood vessels. This was another positive side effect discovered in the 1990s when patients receiving anti-wrinkle injections for other reasons reported fewer migraines.

A Note from Our Medical Team

Whilst anti-wrinkle injections are very popular, they are still a medical procedure, classified as prescription-only in Australia, so be sure to speak to a qualified doctor about all of your options if you’re considering any injectable treatment.

1. https://www.harpersbazaar.com.au/beauty/botox-18629