Maximus Gage
The human face contains about 20 flat skeletal muscles that work together to control facial movements and expressions. Facial muscles are essential for chewing, smiling, frowning, and talking. The facial grading system (FGS) is a tool used to clinically evaluate the function of these muscles. It scores the range of movement as a percentage, with full movement scoring 100%. The FGS is useful for quantifying progress in therapy and can be used to test facial muscle movement. To test your knowledge of the facial muscles and their functions, you can use labelled diagrams, fill-in-the-blank worksheets, and interactive quizzes.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of Facial Muscles | 20 flat skeletal muscles |
| Location | Underneath the skin of the face and scalp, from the scalp to the neck |
| Functions | Chewing, making facial expressions, smiling, grinning, frowning, talking, etc. |
| Facial Muscle Groups | Orbital, nasal, oral, buccolabial, auricular, etc. |
| Facial Muscle Names | Lateral pterygoid, masseter, medial pterygoid, temporalis, orbicularis oris, buccinator, depressor anguli oris, depressor labii inferioris, etc. |
| Facial Muscle Attachments | Originate from bone or fibrous structures of the skull and radiate to insert on the skin |
| Innervation | Branches of the facial nerve (CN VII) |
| Blood Supply | Facial artery, maxillary artery, superficial temporal artery, etc. |
| Facial Grading System | FGS, Sunnybrook, House-Brackmann |
| Testing Methods | Identification quizzes, labeling diagrams, facial nerve palsy test, etc. |
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What You'll Learn
Facial muscle identification skills
Facial muscles, also called craniofacial muscles, are a group of about 20 flat skeletal muscles that lie underneath the skin of the face and scalp. They are responsible for two major tasks: chewing and making facial expressions. They are also involved in speaking and other tasks. Facial muscles are located throughout the face, including the ears, mouth, forehead, nose, and eyes.
Facial muscles can be broadly categorized into three groups: orbital, nasal, and oral. The orbital group of facial muscles contains two muscles associated with the eye socket. The nasal group is associated with movements of the nose and the skin surrounding it. The largest of the nasal muscles is the nasalis, which is comprised of two parts: transverse and alar. The oral group includes the orbicularis oris, a circular composite muscle that surrounds the mouth and forms the majority of the lips.
To improve your facial muscle identification skills, you can start by familiarizing yourself with the names, attachments, and functions of the facial muscles. This can be done through videos, labeled diagrams, and other learning resources. Once you have a basic understanding, you can test your knowledge using facial muscle quizzes and labeling exercises. These can be basic or advanced, depending on your level of expertise.
In a clinical context, the Facial Grading System (FGS) is a tool used to evaluate facial nerve function and score the range of movement of the facial muscles. It is often used to track progress in patients with facial palsy. Another test for facial nerve palsy involves raising the eyebrows and closing the eyelids.
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Testing facial nerve damage
Facial muscles are located throughout the face, including the ears, mouth, forehead, nose, and eyes. They work together to control facial movements and enable us to chew, make facial expressions, and perform other tasks. The facial muscles are controlled by signals from the brain via the facial nerve.
Facial nerve damage can result in partial or complete facial paralysis, with symptoms such as smoothing of the brow, open eye, flat nasolabial fold, and drooping of the mouth. This damage can be caused by a stroke, Bell's Palsy, Lyme disease, or intracranial tumors.
To test for facial nerve damage, a doctor may perform a physical examination and observe the patient's facial movements. This can include asking the patient to smile, show their teeth, or pull back the corners of the mouth, and looking for asymmetry. The blink reflex and eyelid closure can also be examined, as mild facial weakness may be indicated by incomplete eyelid closure.
In addition to the physical examination, there are other tests and scans that can be performed to assess the health and strength of the facial muscles and nerves:
- Electromyography (EMG): Measures a muscle's electrical activity and response to stimulation, used to confirm nerve damage and determine its severity.
- CT or MRI scans: Help identify other causes of facial nerve damage, such as fractures, infections, or tumors in the head and neck area.
- Taste testing: Screening for disorders of taste perception using salt and sugar solutions on the tongue.
- Facial retraining: A non-surgical approach where a therapist helps identify and correct incorrect facial muscle functions.
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Facial muscle attachments
Facial muscles are a group of striated skeletal muscles that control facial expressions and movements. They are also called mimetic muscles and are unique to mammals. These muscles are just under the skin, controlling facial expressions and causing wrinkles. They originate from bones and insert into the dermis, manipulating the skin and soft tissues. Facial muscles are supplied by the facial nerve (cranial nerve VII), with each nerve serving one side of the face.
The facial muscles can be divided into groups based on their location and function. The orbital group of facial muscles contains two muscles associated with the eye socket, controlling the movements of the eyelids. The orbicularis oculi muscle, which has three distinct parts, is one of the orbital muscles. It originates from the medial orbital margin, the medial palpebral ligament, and the lacrimal bone, inserting onto the skin around the margin of the orbit and the tarsal plates of the eyelid. The corrugator supercilii is another orbital muscle that draws the eyebrows together, creating vertical wrinkles on the bridge of the nose.
The nasal group of facial muscles is associated with movements of the nose and the surrounding skin. The nasalis muscle, which has transverse and alar parts, originates from the maxilla and attaches to the nasal skeleton. The depressor septi nasi muscle assists in opening the nostrils by pulling the nasal septum down to widen the nasal opening.
The oral group of facial muscles is responsible for movements of the mouth and lips. The orbicularis oris is the main muscle of the lips, arising from the maxilla and the other muscles of the cheek. The buccinator, a thin muscle in the cheek, helps to control food intake, while the depressor anguli oris pulls down on the corner of the mouth. The risorius pulls the corner of the mouth outward, and the zygomaticus major moves the corner of the mouth upward and outward during smiling.
The auricular muscles are around the ears, allowing some people to move their ears. The buccolabial muscles are in and around the mouth, controlling movements of the cheeks and lips.
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Functions of facial muscles
The human face has about 20 main facial muscles, which are essential for chewing and making facial expressions. These muscles are part of the skeletal system (musculoskeletal system) and are located throughout the face, including the ears, mouth, forehead, nose, and eyes. They run underneath the skin from the scalp down to the neck and are typically paired, with one muscle on each side of the face.
Facial muscles work together to control movements in the face, such as smiling, pouting, or raising eyebrows in surprise. They are responsible for two major tasks: chewing (or mastication) and making facial expressions. The muscles involved in chewing include the lateral pterygoid, masseter, medial pterygoid, and temporalis. These muscles help open and close the jaw during the process of chewing food.
The muscles that control facial expressions can be divided into groups based on their location in the face. For example, the auricular muscles are around the ears and allow some people to move their ears. The buccolabial muscles are in and around the mouth and include the buccinator, which holds the cheek toward the teeth, and the depressor anguli oris, which works with other muscles to produce a frown.
The facial muscles also have a role in speech and emotion expression. For instance, the orbicularis oris muscle, which closes the lips, facilitates speech and helps produce various facial expressions. The buccinator muscle, which compresses the cheek, is important for playing wind instruments or whistling as it allows for the controlled expulsion of air from the inflated vestibule.
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Facial muscle innervations
Facial muscles are responsible for two major tasks: chewing and making facial expressions. They are located throughout the face, including the ears, mouth, forehead, nose, and eyes. These muscles all develop from the second pharyngeal arch, taking their nerve supply with them as they migrate, and are thus all innervated by branches of the facial nerve. The facial nerve is the seventh cranial nerve (CN VII) and it arises from the brain stem. It provides motor innervation of facial muscles responsible for facial expression, parasympathetic innervation of the glands of the oral cavity and the lacrimal gland, and sensory innervation of the anterior two-thirds of the tongue.
The facial muscles can be broadly categorized into three groups: orbital, nasal, and oral. The orbital group of facial muscles contains two muscles associated with the eye socket. The orbicularis oculi muscle surrounds the eye socket and extends into the eyelid, and it has three distinct parts: palpebral, lacrimal, and orbital. The palpebral part gently closes the eyelids, the lacrimal part is involved in the drainage of tears, and the orbital part tightly closes the eyelids. The corrugator supercilii is a much smaller muscle located posteriorly to the orbicularis oculi. The orbital muscles are innervated by the temporal and zygomatic branches of the facial nerve.
The nasal group of facial muscles is associated with movements of the nose and the skin surrounding it. The nasalis is the largest of the nasal muscles and is comprised of two parts: transverse and alar. The transverse part compresses the nasal opening, and the alar part widens it. The procerus is the most superior of the nasal muscles. The nasal muscles are innervated by the buccal branches of the facial nerve.
The oral group of facial muscles includes the buccinator, a thin muscle in the cheek that holds it toward the teeth, and the depressor anguli oris, which is on the side of the chin and works with other muscles to produce a frown. The orbicularis oris is innervated by the buccal and marginal mandibular branches of the facial nerve. The levator labii superioris is a short triangular muscle that assists other buccolabial muscles to elevate and evert the upper lip, exposing the maxillary teeth and deepening the nasolabial lines. This muscle is innervated by the zygomatic and buccal branches of the facial nerve. The depressor labii inferioris is the main tractor of the lower lip, pulling it inferomedially.
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Frequently asked questions
Facial muscles, also called craniofacial muscles, are a group of about 20 flat skeletal muscles lying underneath the skin of the face and scalp. They are responsible for two major tasks: chewing and making facial expressions.
The FGS (Facial Grading System) is a tool used in the clinical evaluation of facial nerve function. It scores the range of movement of the facial muscles as a percentage. The test for facial nerve palsy involves raising the eyebrows and closing the eyelids.
The muscles involved in chewing (muscles of mastication) are: Lateral pterygoid, Masseter, Medial pterygoid, and Temporalis.
The muscles that control facial expressions can be divided into groups based on where they are located on your face. The auricular muscles are around your ears, the buccolabial muscles are in and around your mouth, and the nasal group of muscles are associated with movements of the nose and the skin surrounding it.
You can learn more about the facial muscles by using labelled diagrams and quizzes.
