The appearance of peaked eyebrows can be a side effect of a Botox treatment. Fortunately, this can easily be treated.
What is Botox?
Botox is a purified protein used to treat wrinkles caused by facial expressions. Botox is most commonly used in the upper face. Botox can treat horizontal forehead wrinkles seen when you raise your eyebrows, frown lines seen between your eyebrows when you frown or simply bring your eyebrows together, and the crow’s feet around your eyes seen when you smile or squint.
How does Botox work on the upper face?
Botox works by relaxing muscles. There are a number of muscles in the upper face. When you use these muscles, you make certain facial expressions such as raising your eyebrows, frowning, and smiling. Over time and with repetitive use these muscles get stronger. When they get stronger sometimes you can see wrinkles in the area. This is common in people who are very expressive. There is a muscle on the upper forehead called the frontalis which is the muscle you use to raise your eyebrows. This is the muscle that leads to horizontal forehead wrinkles. The frontalis muscle is the most variable muscle in the upper face. Some people have broad foreheads while others have narrow foreheads. The larger the forehead, the larger the muscle. Some people have one single muscle that spans the entire forehead, while others have a split muscle with a space in the middle. And in some people the muscle extends very wide going near the ears. This muscle is the only muscle that raises your eyebrows. So if it (and the other muscles) is not relaxed correctly, you can see changes in the forehead such as a peaked eyebrow or a low or heavy eyebrow. There is a group of muscles in the area between your eyebrows called the glabella. These muscles bring the central portion of the eyebrows together and downward. They contribute to the frown lines between your eyebrows. Usually there are two muscles that go up and down making it look like the number eleven; sometimes people refer to them as elevens. But some people have horizontal lines and some diagonal lines; some people have only one line and others have three or more lines. It all depends on your anatomy. There is a muscle that goes around each eye called the orbicularis oculi. You contract this muscle when you smile, squint, or close your eyes tightly. When this muscle contracts you can see crow’s feet lines around your eyes.
What causes a peaked eyebrow?
Sometimes people get a peaked eyebrow after a Botox treatment. This can make you look surprised and it’s sometimes called a Spock, Mephisto, or Jack Nicholson look. This can occur for a number of reasons. For example, sometimes a peaked eyebrow is seen when only the glabella area is treated with Botox. This relaxes the muscles between the eyebrows. Usually, a small amount of the Botox spreads to the nearby central area of the frontalis muscle. This makes it harder to raise the inner eyebrows. However, the outer part of the frontalis muscle is working normally. So the outer eyebrows are lifted and you see a peaked appearance. The other way that you can see a peaked eyebrow after a Botox treatment is if the frontalis muscle is treated, but not completely. This requires the doctor to take a careful look at your forehead when you raise your eyebrows. When you raise your eyebrows, you can tell where this muscle is. As mentioned above, in some people the muscle is very wide while in others it’s narrow. If your frontalis muscle is wide, it’s important that the Botox be placed in the outer portion of the muscle. If not, then the outer part of the muscle will work, lifting your outer eyebrows while the inner portion will not. This also leads to a peaked eyebrow. In some cases, the Botox spreads to the outer portion of the muscle on one side, but not the other side. In these cases you may see only one eyebrow peaked.
How is a peaked eyebrow fixed?
Fortunately, a peaked eyebrow can easily be fixed. It takes up to two weeks to see full effects of your Botox treatment, so it’s important to be patient and wait at least that long before doing anything. Sometimes certain muscles or parts of muscle relax faster after a Botox treatment than others. Many times, simply waiting two weeks will allow all of the muscles to be relaxed and the result will be perfect. If at two weeks your eyebrows are still peaked, a small amount of Botox (1-2 units per side) can be placed in the outer eyebrows. This will correct the peaked appearance. Again, you will need to wait another two weeks to see the full results, but many people will notice improvement in a few days. Dr. Alex guarantees his results so if you receive the full dose of Botox and you have a peaked eyebrow or your results are not perfect, Dr. Alex will provide complimentary additional Botox units. You never have to worry about bad Botox results with Dr. Alex.
Dr. Alex has performed over 10,000 cosmetic treatments with many satisfied patients. Contact us to schedule an appointment for a free consultation with Dr. Alex in our Encino, CA office.