The uses of Botox are many and varied, with the product currently licensed for all kinds of applications, both medical and aesthetic. Best known as an anti-wrinkle treatment, Botox is also used to combat excessive sweating, treat urinary incontinence, relieve migraines and reduce muscle spasms.

And the newspapers last week featured another aesthetic application for the drug – treating gummy smiles.

Injected into the upper lip, the drug temporarily reduces the strength of the muscles which pull the top lip up toward the nose when a person smiles. Consequently, the amount of gum revealed is smaller, creating a more pleasing “Hollywood” smile.

Dentists and cosmetic surgeons broadly agree that the ‘ideal smile’ sees the upper lip sit roughly level with the top of the teeth, with a maximum of only two millimetres of gum showing. According to Dr Stan Heifetz, a New York based cosmetic dentist, “Anything over three to four millimetres of gum showing starts to look ‘gummy'”.

To date, the most widely used treatment for correcting gummy smiles has been surgery, with several different techniques available depending on the underlying cause, including lip repositioning or gum lift/contouring surgery (gingivectomy).

But Botox has the advantage of being much quicker, taking only around 10 minutes to administer, as well as being far less invasive and cheaper for patients. And as with wrinkle treatment, results are fairly long-term, typically lasting for up to 6 months.

This particular use for Botox offers another popular treatment to add to your clinic. Here at Cosmetic Courses, we have been offering training in this technique for many years as part of our Advanced Botox & dermal fillers course.

For details on training in advanced Botox techniques, including treating gummy smiles, or to find out more about any other course in our programme, please give our team a call on 01844 390110 or email [email protected].