Anthropometry of Soft Facial Tissues

The head is the most visible part of the human anatomy and is the way that people recognize each other visually. It is the site of food intake; all the major sensory organs associated with food detection and procurement are located in the head (vision, smell and hearing), together with all the structures to protect these vital organs. The muscles associated with food capture and chewing are also those associated with defense and are powerful. They have prominent insertions into the jaw and broad areas of origin on the cranium. Less powerful striated muscle take origin at the cranium or jaw and are inserted into the fascia of the skin. These muscles originally served as muscles protecting vital organs and orifices but have, with time, come to function more as muscles of facial expression and phonation, with very precise movements that convey the state of mind of the individual quickly. The various components of the soft tissue of the face are usually considered separately (muscle, connective tissue and adipose tissue), although they function as one coordinated system. For example, the connective tissue network, which contains elastic fibers, permits rapid deformation and relaxation of the face by the muscles of facial expression and phonation. This chapter will reflect upon the embryological and fetal development of the components of the soft tissues of the face; commonly used methods of assessing the soft tissues together with their advantages and disadvantages and variation of the soft tissues with sex, age, ponderosity and race. Finally, some practical uses of this information will be examined.