Orbicularis Oculi Beneath The Skin, Lateral View

Description

Curving in a concentric ring around the orbital rim, the orbicularis oculi is shown in lateral profile beneath the facial skin, with its palpebral part spanning the eyelids anterior to the tarsal plates and its orbital part sweeping over the lateral orbital margin toward the temporal region. Medially, fibers converge toward the medial canthus in continuity with the lacrimal portion (Horner muscle), adjacent to the lacrimal sac fossa and the nasolacrimal drainage pathway. Posterior bony context includes the zygomatic bone laterally and the frontal process of the maxilla anteromedially, while nearby facial muscles such as the masseter sit inferior and posterior along the mandibular ramus. Skin, hair, and facial hair remain intact, creating a true subcutaneous dissection perspective. Lateral views like this matter when you need to teach or plan around eyelid mechanics rather than just facial expression. Weakness of the orbicularis oculi after facial nerve (CN VII) palsy produces lagophthalmos and exposure keratopathy, and the medial canthal fibers are directly tied to lacrimal pump function and epiphora when disrupted. Surgeons also rely on these fiber directions when placing periocular incisions (for example, blepharoplasty or lateral canthotomy) to minimize postoperative lid malposition and to respect the preseptal and pretarsal planes. Use this artwork in head and neck anatomy courses, ophthalmology and oculoplastics teaching files, and facial nerve palsy chapters where readers need a clean map of the palpebral and lacrimal components against the orbital margin. It also supports patient-facing education on blinking, tear drainage, and periocular surgical approaches in a side-profile format that remains anatomically faithful. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.