Role of Botox in Efficient Muscle Relaxation and Treatment Outcome: An Overview

Dear Editor, Smile is the most distinguished expression, and is the keystone of social interaction and communication. It is the universal welcoming greeting in all cultures and ethnicity. Just as a pleasant smile can act as a potential communication tool, an unpleasing smile can have the equally downbeat impact. Smile designing and functional restoration with dental implants, especially in partially edentulous patients, has become incredibly popular among prosthodontists in the last two decades. Botox is one of the most promising and exciting novel additions to the dentist’s arsenal for the treatment of temporomandibular disorder (TMD), mandibular spasm, prominent gums, masseteric hypertrophy and various cosmetic corrections. Botox is the generic name for the neurotoxin protein botulinum toxin Type A produced by fermentation of anaerobic bacterium Clostridium botulinum, which is a secure, sterilized and vacuum‐dried powder diluted with saline solution. In implant therapy, bone to implant union (osseointegration) can be impeded by excessive functional forces in patients with para‐functional habits. Additionally, implant overloading while healing can result in early implant failure primarily by cessation of the active osseointegration process. Botox therapy prior to implant surgeries has been shown to enhance prognosis and aesthetic advantages. This is especially true in patients with a known history of night clenching of teeth (bruxism), where prophylactic use of botox injections is very effective in achieving true bone to implant connection. Botox decreases the muscle activity by blocking overactive nerve impulses that trigger excessive muscular contractions by selectively preventing the release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh) at the neuromuscular junction.[1]