As we mentioned last week, we’ve been working hard to institute a brand-new Botox program here at Castlebury Dental! I took a facial anatomy course in order to get certified to offer this new treatment option, and now we’re finally rolling it out.
But you’re probably a little confused: Why on earth would a dentist offer Botox?
Well, there’s a common misconception about Botox, that it’s just a cosmetic procedure to keep your face from getting too wrinkled. While we’ll be able to offer Botox for cosmetic treatment, we’re more interested in Botox for its other important uses here at Castlebury.
Botox Helps With TMD And Jaw Pain
As a dentist, my job isn’t just about cleaning teeth and poking your gums with a metal rod (contrary to popular belief). If you have facial or jaw pain, that’s something dentists are able to diagnose and treat.
Often, the issue is temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). The temporomandibular joint is a ball joint connecting the upper and lower jaws. It can get very tender and swollen or freeze up on you, and such problems are often accompanied by a disconcerting clicking or popping noise when you try to talk or chew.
Fortunately, now that I have Botox as a treatment option, I can use it to help people with TMD or jaw pain. When the Botox relaxes the muscles surrounding the joint, you’ll experience welcome relief from pain and tenderness.
Botox Helps With Headaches
Do you suffer from migraine headaches? You’re considered a chronic migraine sufferer if you have them on more than fifteen days each month. That’s a debilitating condition and a major reduction in your quality of life!
Thankfully, periodic Botox treatments can numb your headache symptoms for about twelve weeks at a time, so you don’t have to suffer half your life with chronic headaches!
Botox Helps With Teeth Grinding
Another major dental issue that Botox can help with is teeth grinding, known in the dental world as bruxism. Bruxism is likely the most common sleeping disorder, affecting 15 percent of the American population.
You have mastication muscles to help you chew, but patients with nighttime bruxism unconsciously grind their teeth and cause themselves significant dental damage. There are appliances you can use to reduce this damage, but the only way to really stop the bruxism itself is through Botox.
Botox relaxes the muscles that help you chew, keeping them from contracting and reducing the incidence of nighttime bruxism. If you’re suffering from any sort of teeth-grinding problem, Castlebury Dental can now use Botox treatment to help!
In the end, Botox actually offers a surprisingly diverse range of benefits to dental patients. We can resolve a multitude of dental issues with Botox, which is why we’re so excited to start offering this important treatment in our office.
If you’re interested in hearing more, we encourage you to stop in or call our office for details! We can’t wait to help!
Keep Smiling!
~Dr. Brown