The Bones of The Face & Skull

The Bones of The Face & Skull

THE SKELETAL SYSTEM

Bone is the hardest tissue in the human body. Bone is made from specialised cells called osteocytes which create rigid non-elastic tissue.
These cells are surrounded by a matrix of collagen fibres strengthened by calcium and phosphate. Bones have lots of hollow spaces within their structure that serve to both make the bone light and to provide tiny spaces for blood vessels and nerves to supply the bone tissue.

 

FUNCTIONS OF THE SKELETON
The skeleton has five main functions.
1 Protection – the skull protects the brain; the spine protects the spinal cord; the rib cage protects the heart and lungs.
2 Support – bones give support for the muscles of the body and give shape to the body contours and the characteristics of our face shape.
3 Movement – bones have ridges where muscles attach to allow bones and joints to provide flexible movement.
4 Formation of blood cells – all red blood cells and some of the white blood cells are made of specialised tissue called bone marrow.
5 Storage and release of certain vitamins and minerals – including calcium and phosphorous.

 

STRUCTURE OF THE SKELETAL SYSTEM
SHAPES OF BONE
There are 206 bones in the body and these are shaped according to the function they need to perform. There are five different shapes or types
of bone:
1 long bones
2 short bones
3 irregular bones
4 flat bones
5 sesamoid bones.

Flat bones
These bones are good for creating protective shells, eg the bones of the cranium and the sternum and scapular in the torso.
The cranium is made up of 8 cranial bones and 14 facial bones (22 total)These bones protect the brain and support other structures such as the eyes and teeth. All the bones are joined together by sutures which make the joints immovable after childhood. The cranium is attached to the body via the vertebral column. The weight of the head rests on the neck and shoulder girdle

JOINTS
A joint is where two bones meet. Muscles and tendons stretch across joints when they move. Joints are classified by their structure or by the
way they move. There are three main types of joints:
1 fibrous/fixed joints
2 cartilaginous/slightly moveable joints
3 synovial/freely moveable joints.

FIBROUS/FIXED JOINTS
These joints are tightly linked with a tough fibrous material and have virtually no movement, eg the skull. There is only one moving bone in the face which is the mandible, via a synovial hinge joint.

 

BONES OF THE SKULL AND FACE …

The bones of the skull include:

  • Occipital bone which is located at the lower base of the skull
  • Frontal bone which lies on the anterior surface forming the forehead and upper eye sockets
  • Sphenoid bone which is wing shaped and forms the temple
  • 2 x Temporal bones located at the side of the skull around the ear area
  • 2 x Parietal bones located at the side and back of the head forming the roof of the skull
  • Ethmoid bone lies between the eye sockets (frontal and sphenoid bones) forming the nasal cavities

 

The bones of the face:

  • Mandible: this bone forms the lower jaw and supports the lower teeth.
  • 2 x Maxilla: these bones form the upper jaw and supports the upper teeth
  • 2 x Lachrymal: located one in each eye socket
  • 2 x Zygomatic: these bones form the cheek bones
  • 2 x Nasal bones: which form the bridge of the nose
  • 2 x Turbinate: these small bones lie inside the nose forming its walls
  • Vomer: this bone forms the nasal septum
  • 2 x Palatine: these bones form the side walls of the nose and roof of the mouth

 

The shoulder girdle comprises of:

  • 2 x Clavicle bones: lie on either side of the shoulder
  • 2 x Scapula bones: located on the posterior side of the back below the shoulder girdle at the top of the ribcage
  • 2 x Humerus arm bones: attached to the clavicle bones and form the upper arm

 

This video may be useful in locating and identifying the purpose of the bones of the face.