The buccal fat pad (also called Bichat’s fat pad, after

Xavier Bichat Marie François Xavier Bichat (; ; 14 November 1771 – 22 July 1802) was a French anatomist and pathologist, known as the father of modern histology. Although he worked without a microscope, Bichat distinguished 21 types of elementary tissues ...

, and the buccal pad of fat) is one of several encapsulated

fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers spec ...

masses in the cheek. It is a deep fat pad located on either side of the face between the

buccinator muscle The buccinator () is a thin quadrilateral muscle occupying the interval between the maxilla and the mandible at the side of the face. It forms the anterior part of the cheek or the lateral wall of the oral cavity.Illustrated Anatomy of the Head ...

and several more superficial muscles (including the

masseter In human anatomy, the masseter is one of the muscles of mastication. Found only in mammals, it is particularly powerful in herbivores to facilitate chewing of plant matter. The most obvious muscle of mastication is the masseter muscle, since it ...

, the

zygomaticus major The zygomaticus major muscle is a muscle of the human body. It extends from each zygomatic arch (cheekbone) to the corners of the mouth. It is a muscle of facial expression which draws the angle of the mouth superiorly and posteriorly to allow one ...

, and the

zygomaticus minor The zygomaticus minor muscle is a muscle of facial expression. It originates from the zygomatic bone, lateral to the rest of the levator labii superioris muscle, and inserts into the outer part of the upper lip. It draws the upper lip backward, up ...

). The inferior portion of the buccal fat pad is contained within the

buccal space The buccal space (also termed the buccinator space) is a fascial space of the head and neck (sometimes also termed fascial tissue spaces or tissue spaces). It is a potential space in the cheek, and is paired on each side. The buccal space is supe ...

. It should not be confused with the malar fat pad, which is directly below the skin of the cheek. It should also not be confused with jowl fat pads. It is implicated in the formation of hollow cheeks and the

nasolabial fold The nasolabial folds, commonly known as "smile lines" or "laugh lines", are facial features. They are the two skin folds that run from each side of the nose (human), nose to the corners of the mouth (human), mouth. They are defined by facial struct ...

, but not in the formation of jowls.

Nomenclature and structure

The buccal fat pad is composed of several parts, although exactly how many parts seems to be a point of disagreement and no single consistent nomenclature of these parts has been observed. It was described as being divided into three lobes, the anterior, intermediate, and posterior, “according to the structure of the lobar envelopes, the formation of

ligament A ligament is the fibrous connective tissue that connects bones to other bones. It is also known as ''articular ligament'', ''articular larua'', ''fibrous ligament'', or ''true ligament''. Other ligaments in the body include the: * Peritoneal li ...

s, and the source of the nutritional vessels”. Also, there are four extensions from the body of the buccal fat pad: the sublevator, the melolabial, the buccal, and the pterygoid. The nomenclature of these extensions derives from their location and proximal muscles. The anterior lobe of the buccal fat surrounds the

parotid duct The parotid duct, or Stensen duct, is a salivary duct. It is the route that saliva takes from the major salivary gland, the parotid gland, into the mouth. Structure The parotid duct is formed when several interlobular ducts, the largest ducts in ...

, which conveys saliva from the parotid gland to the mouth. It is a triangular mass with one vertex at the buccinators, one at the

levator labii superioris alaeque nasi The levator labii superioris alaeque nasi muscle is, translated from Latin, the "lifter of both the upper lip and of the wing of the nose". It has the longest name of any muscle in an animal. The muscle is attached to the upper frontal process of ...

, and one at the

orbicularis oris In human anatomy, the orbicularis oris muscle is a complex of muscles in the lips that encircles the mouth. It is a sphincter, or circular muscle, but it is actually composed of four independent quadrants that interlace and give only an appearance ...

. The intermediate lobe lies between the anterior and posterior lobes over the maxilla. The intermediate lobe seems to lose a significant amount of volume between childhood and adulthood. The posterior lobe of the buccal fat pad runs from the infraorbital fissure and temporal muscle to the upper rim of the mandible and back to the

mandibular ramus In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movable bone ...

Function

Some people describe the buccal fat pad’s primary function in relation to chewing and suckling, especially in infants. This theory derives some support from the loss of volume to the intermediate lobe, which would be most directly involved in chewing and sucking, from infancy to adulthood. Another proposed function is as gliding pads that facilitate the action of the muscles of mastication. The buccal fat pad may also function as a cushion to protect sensitive facial muscles from injury due to muscle action or exterior force. 300px

Clinical uses

The Buccal fat pad is commonly used in facial recontouring. Several authors discuss the importance of the buccal fat pad in attaining good results from a

facelift A facelift, technically known as a rhytidectomy (from the Ancient Greek () "wrinkle", and () "excision", the surgical removal of wrinkles), is a type of cosmetic surgery procedure used to give a more youthful facial appearance. There are mult ...

. Buccal flaps (not always including the buccal fat pad) are used in reconstruction of the periorbital area after injury. They are also used to repair congenital defects of the oral cavity or for repair of congenital

cleft palate A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The te ...

. Removal of the buccal fat pad is also sometimes used to reduce cheek prominence, although this procedure may carry with it a significant risk of damage to the buccal branch of the facial nerve and the parotid ducts.

References

{{Authority control Human head and neck Facial features