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The facial muscles are a group of striated skeletal muscles supplied by the facial nerve (cranial nerve VII) that, among other things, control facial expression. These muscles are also called mimetic muscles. They are only found in mammals, although they derive from neural crest cells found in all vertebrates.
The facial nerve, also known as the seventh cranial nerve, cranial nerve VII, or simply CN VII, is a cranial nerve that emerges from the pons of the brainstem, controls the muscles of facial expression, and functions in the conveyance of taste sensations from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue.
Branches of the facial nerve leaving the facial motor nucleus (FMN) for the muscles do so via both left and right posterior (dorsal) and anterior (ventral) routes. In other words, this means lower motor neurons of the facial nerve can leave either from the left anterior, left posterior, right anterior or right posterior facial motor nucleus.
Thus the facial artery can be used as an important landmark in locating the marginal mandibular nerve during surgical procedures. [2] Damage can cause paralysis of the three muscles it supplies, which can cause an asymmetrical smile due to lack of contraction of the depressor labii inferioris muscle . [ 3 ]
The superficial branches run beneath the skin and above the superficial muscles of the face, which they supply: some are distributed to the procerus, joining at the medial angle of the orbit with the infratrochlear and nasociliary branches of the ophthalmic.
However, Terminologia Anatomica currently classifies it as part of the occipitofrontalis muscle along with the occipitalis muscle. [2] In humans, the frontalis muscle only serves for facial expressions. [3] The frontalis muscle is supplied by the facial nerve [4] and receives blood from the supraorbital and supratrochlear arteries.
The zygomatic branches of the facial nerve (malar branches) are nerves of the face.They run across the zygomatic bone to the lateral angle of the orbit.Here, they supply the orbicularis oculi muscle, and join with filaments from the lacrimal nerve and the zygomaticofacial branch of the maxillary nerve (CN V 2).
The temporal branch of the facial nerve is typically found between the temporoparietal fascia (i.e., superficial temporal fascia) and temporal fascia (i.e., deep temporal fascia). This layer is also known as the innominate fascia. There are several methods using anatomic landmarks that may be used to find the temporal branch of the facial nerve.