Anatomy of the Forehead and Periocular Region

The upper third of the face is composed of the forehead and eyes. The forehead and eyes together often convey a person&s;s emotional state or feelings. The upper eyelids are most commonly described with the upper third of the face due to the close relationship with forehead, eyebrows. The ideal hairline creates a balanced face when it is divided into horizontal thirds. A receding and thinning hairline tends to lengthen the forehead and contribute to the perception of aging. The forehead rhytides become more defined as the frontalis muscle attempts to compensate for progressive descent of the eyebrows. The squama corresponds to the forehead and most commonly has a gentle convexity. Inferiorly the frontalis muscle inserts into the forehead skin blending with fibers from the orbicularis oculi, procerus, corrugator muscles. The supraorbital nerve passes through the supraorbital foramen, innervating the upper eyelid and then ascends on the forehead to innervate the lateral and superior parts of the forehead, the scalp.