Importance of Cheekbones in Facial Trauma

Importance of Cheekbones – The ins and outs You Must Know!

Do you believe in the saying, “Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder?” Well, this is right most probably. But there are certain features in the body that we are naturally lured to. High cheekbones take an important place in the attractive features list. But yes, there are handsome men and beautiful women with low cheekbones. However, there is a widespread conviction that high cheekbones are a sign of beauty and attraction. This is because high cheekbones give a more symmetrical face. Did you this interesting fact that high cheekbones are associated with trustworthiness? Yes, a 2014 study by the New York University scientists showed that high cheekbones represent a trustworthy person, or at least our brains presume so. Now, you must have a good understanding about the importance of cheekbones.

Let’s get skin deep to know what exactly cheekbones are –

Cheekbone also known as malar bone or zygomatic bone is a pyramid or diamond – shaped bone underneath or adjacent to the orbit or eye socket at the broadest part of the cheek. It plays a major role in enhancing ones look as it fosters the following functions –

• Firstly, being the most prominent part of the lateral face, it behaves as a buffer to other structures like the orbits and protects them from injury.
• Secondly, it gives a nice projection to the face which is a major contributor to the aesthetics of any individuals face.

 

Any injury to this part may lead to a fracture and can push it inwards thereby restricting the movements of the lower jaw. Therefore, anyone who unfortunately meet with a road accident or encounter any kind of injury on the cheeks will not only lose the projection of their cheeks making them look unpleasant but also, will have trouble in opening their mouth. We have come across number of patients who congenitally don’t have this malar bone and hence have a very flat appearing face.

Look at the pictures below. This patient who met with a road accident, fell hurting his right side of the face that resulted in the fracture of his zygomatic complex. When he first came to Richardson’s Dental and Craniofacial Hospital, he was completely dejected about the flatness on one side of the face. Together, he was unable to open his mouth beyond 1 cm. Dr. Sunil Richardson performed a 2-hour long surgery successfully and gave him back his perfect cheekbones. Not only that, he could open his mouth normally without any issues.

Oral and maxillofacial surgeons specialize in treating such problems associated with the malar bones. If it is due to a physical injury or a congenital disorder, the surgeons will either correct it by bringing the bones back to their original position or employing different materials in that area to augment it and give the cheeks a fuller and more aesthetic look.