The Platysma Contraction Pattern in Healthy Adults: A Vector Analysis Study

The platysma muscle's role in lower face dynamics is complex. Multiple insertion points to soft-tissue structures at various levels in the lower face create a multifaceted contraction pattern. To avoid adverse effects in cosmetic procedures when targeting the platysma, its anatomy and physiology must be understood. Clinical observations hint at a bidirectional contraction pattern.

Eighteen healthy volunteers (13 women and five men) with a mean age of 44.2 ± 10.1 years were enrolled. Skin displacement vector analysis was used on maximal platysma contraction to characterize and calculate the movement of the neck and lower face skin.

In all of the participants, a bidirectional movement of the skin was observed: the skin of the lower face and inferior to the jawline moved caudally, whereas the skin of the lower neck moved cephalad. Both movements converged at a line situated at 54% ± 10% and 55% ± 8% of the length between the clavicle and the inferior base of the ear lobe in men and women, respectively ( P = 0.70).

The platysma is a bidirectional muscle with a line of convergence. Whereas the superior portion acts as lip depressor, the lower portion elevates the skin of the upper chest and lower neck. This transition can explain some of the clinically observed adverse effects of neuromodulation of the neck area. It can potentially direct neuromodulation injections to focus above the convergence line to better address lower face descent.