Levator Anguli Oris, Lateral View

Description

Shown in lateral profile, the levator anguli oris is isolated against the maxilla and mandible, rising from the canine fossa of the maxilla just inferior to the infraorbital margin and coursing inferolaterally toward the modiolus at the oral commissure. Adjacent bony landmarks include the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital bones, with the zygomatic arch spanning anteriorly toward the maxilla and the dentition seated in the alveolar processes. Nearby muscles expected in this field include the masseter over the ramus of the mandible and the perioral elevators, such as levator labii superioris and zygomaticus major, which converge around the angle of the mouth. Functionally, levator anguli oris elevates the corner of the mouth and contributes to the smile and to subtle upper-lip posture, acting in concert with other mimetic muscles that interdigitate at the modiolus. Small muscle, big effect. Its motor supply from the buccal branches of the facial nerve makes it relevant in facial nerve palsy, where weakness produces a depressed oral commissure and impaired commissural elevation, and in reconstructive planning after trauma or cleft-related perioral surgery, where restoring vector balance at the modiolus determines symmetry more than any single suture line. The lateral view also helps clarify how this elevator sits anterior to the masseter and superficial to the maxilla, an orientation that matters when teaching facial compartments and avoiding iatrogenic injury during midface approaches. Use this asset for head and neck anatomy teaching, dental and maxillofacial surgical atlases, and facial nerve evaluation guides that need a clear lateral relationship between the midfacial skeleton, dentition, and perioral musculature. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.