Dr. Dean Kane Botox Q & A 
Q. Can Botox be used to tighten lose neck muscles (ex: turkey neck?) I have been told this is done in Europe. Pletismyoplasty?( surgical neck tightening) is very expensive. Can Botox be done and effective?
A. Botox is a muscle relaxer. It cannot tighten a neck nor any other feature. It can be used to rebalance muscle pull. The idea of using Botox to create a “facelift”-like elevation and smoothening the neck is resurrected recently with the new generation of injectors. They assert that by injecting the platysma muscle near the jawline, the platysma cannot pull the face skin down and therefore facial muscles will lift the face. Unfortunately, many of us discovered this is not very reliable option 2-3 decades ago.
The platysma is split creating an upside down “V” shaped band under the neck in some 80-90% of individuals. In some patients, the band is tight and obvious and Botox can be used to soften it. In most patients with skin laxity, the “bands” are waves of skin which have drifted from the jawline and face down and to the middle of the neck. For this, a facelift with extension into the neck, or face and neck lift with platysmaplasty will be necessary to redrape the skin excess upward and outward; removing the extra skin along creases around the ears.
Platysmaplasty will bring the medial muscle edges together to create a hammock supporting the floor of the mouth and submandibular (under-chin) triangle. For further elevation, a variety of neck suspension techniques are used to provide a crisper neck and jawline appearance.
I hope this was helpful. All the best!
