Anatomic considerations of the lips

The lips are a prominent facial feature and play an important role in communication, both verbal and nonverbal, mastication, deglutition, and providing an oral seal. The American Joint Committee on Cancer defines the lip as the junction of the vermillion border with the skin and includes only the vermillion surface or that portion of the lip that comes into contact with the opposing lip. It is well defined into an upper and lower lip joined at the commissure of the mouth. A thorough understanding of lip anatomy allows the surgeon to confidently perform lip reconstruction following tumor resection, understand the basis for selected neck dissections in lip cancer, and provide a high level of patient care. The anatomy of the lip can be broken down into the surface anatomy, microanatomy, and lymphatic anatomy. The aim of this chapter is to provide a comprehensive review of the anatomy of the lip.