Facial skeleton

Synonyms: viscerocranium, splanchnocranium
German: Viszerokranium, Gesichtsschädel

1 Definition

The facial skeleton together with the neurocranium build the human skull. It consist of 16 bones which give shape to the face. The facial skeleton house and protect the sense organs of sight, smell and taste.

2 Development

The facial skeleton develop from the pharyngeal arches.

3 Anatomy

The facial skeleton consits of the following bones:

3.1 Paired

• Inferior nasal concha (left and right)
• Lacrimal bones (left and right)
• Maxilla (left and right)
• Nasal bones (left and right)
• Palatine bones (left and right)
• Zygomatic bones (left and right)

3.2 Unpaired

• Ethmoid bone
• Frontal bone (orbital and nasal part)
• Vomer
• Mandible

The facial skeleton is located anterioinferiorly to the neurocranium. In humans the border between viscerocranium and neurocranium pass from the superior border of the orbit (superciliary arches) to the superior border of the external acoustic meatus. The facial bones form the orbit, the nasal cavity and the oral cavity. All bones which belong to the facial skeleton are connected by sutures except of the mandible which is the only movable part of the whole skull. The mandible is connected to the temporal bone by the temporomandibular joint (TMJ).

4 References

• Facial skeleton - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[1] retrieved on 11 July 2016
• Schädel – Wikipedia[2] retrieved on 11 July 2016
• medscape[3] retrieved on 11 July 2016