Patients who received Botox before corrective jaw surgery reported less pain and used fewer opioids during recovery than those given a placebo.
A study published in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery found that patients who received botulinum toxin type A (Botox) injections before corrective jaw surgery reported lower pain levels and used fewer opioid pain medications during recovery than patients who received a placebo.
The study focused on patients undergoing mandibular advancement surgery, a corrective jaw procedure often performed to address bite issues, improve facial balance, or treat certain breathing-related conditions. Recovery can be challenging because the masseter and temporalis muscles, which control jaw movement, are significantly affected during surgery and can tighten, spasm, and ache as they adjust to the jaw’s new position.
Because Botox has been used to reduce pain and muscle spasms in other surgical settings by relaxing muscle contractions, researchers hypothesized that it could have a similar effect following corrective jaw surgery.
In the study, conducted between 2021 and 2024, researchers enrolled 40 patients ages 18 to 65 scheduled for surgery at Kingsway Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and randomly assigned them to receive either Botox or placebo injections into the jaw muscles two weeks before surgery. Neither the patients nor the surgeons knew which treatment had been administered. Both groups followed identical postoperative pain management plans, including access to prescription pain medication, ibuprofen, and acetaminophen as needed.
Patients in the Botox group reported lower pain levels before taking pain medication throughout the 14-day study period and used fewer opioid doses than patients in the placebo group. On average, patients in the treatment group used about five opioid doses compared with about nine doses in the placebo group.
Researchers suggested that Botox may reduce baseline pain, potentially contributing to lower opioid use during recovery.
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