Facial Muscles Stock Photo

The facial muscles are subcutaneous (just under the skin) muscles that control facial expression. They generally originate from the surface of the skull bone (rarely the fascia), and insert on the skin of the face. When they contract, the skin moves. These muscles also cause wrinkles at right angles to the muscles’ action line. Use of these muscles is noted during an extraoral examination, assuring function of the nerve to these muscles.