Repeated injections of botulinum toxin into the masseter muscle induce bony changes in human adults: A longitudinal study

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate soft- and hard-tissue changes in the mandibular angle area after the administration of botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) injection to patients with masseteric hypertrophy by using three-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography (3D-CBCT). METHODS: Twenty volunteers were randomly divided into two groups of 10 patients. Patients in group I received a single BoNT-A injection in both masseter muscles, while those in group II received two BoNT-A injections in each masseter muscle, with the second injection being administered 4 months after the first one. In both groups, 3D-CBCT was performed before the first injection and 6 months after the first injection. RESULTS: Masseter muscle thicknesses and cross-sectional areas were significantly reduced in both groups, but the reductions were significantly more substantial in group II than in group I. The intergonial width of the mandibular angle area did not change significantly in either group. However, the bone volume of the mandibular gonial angle area was more significantly reduced in group II than in group I. CONCLUSIONS: The repeated administration of BoNT-A injections may induce bone volume changes in the mandibular angle area.