The vermilion border (sometimes spelled vermillion border), also called margin or zone, is the normally sharp demarcation between the

lip The lips are a horizontal pair of soft appendages attached to the jaws and are the most visible part of the mouth of many animals, including humans. Mammal lips are soft, movable and serve to facilitate the ingestion of food (e.g. sucklin ...

and the adjacent normal

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have different ...

. It represents the change in the

epidermis The epidermis is the outermost of the three layers that comprise the skin, the inner layers being the dermis and Subcutaneous tissue, hypodermis. The epidermal layer provides a barrier to infection from environmental pathogens and regulates the ...

from highly

keratin Keratin () is one of a family of structural fibrous proteins also known as ''scleroproteins''. It is the key structural material making up Scale (anatomy), scales, hair, Nail (anatomy), nails, feathers, horn (anatomy), horns, claws, Hoof, hoove ...

ized external skin to less keratinized internal skin. It has no

sebaceous gland A sebaceous gland or oil gland is a microscopic exocrine gland in the skin that opens into a hair follicle to secrete an oily or waxy matter, called sebum, which lubricates the hair and skin of mammals. In humans, sebaceous glands occur in ...

sweat gland Sweat glands, also known as sudoriferous or sudoriparous glands, , are small tubular structures of the skin that produce sweat. Sweat glands are a type of exocrine gland, which are glands that produce and secrete substances onto an epithelial s ...

s, or

facial hair Facial hair is hair grown on the face, usually on the chin, cheeks, bottom lip and upper lip region. It is typically a secondary sex characteristic of human males. Men typically start developing facial hair in the later stages of puberty or adol ...

. It has a prominence on the face, creating a focus for

cosmetics Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...

(it is where

lipstick Lipstick is a cosmetics, cosmetic product used to apply coloration and texture to lips, often made of wax and oil. Different pigments are used to produce color, and minerals such as silica may be used to provide texture. The use of lipstick ...

is sometimes applied) and is also a location for several skin diseases. Its functional properties, however, remain unknown.

Structure

The lips are composed wholly of soft tissue. The skin of the face is thicker than the skin overlying the lips where blood vessels are closer to the surface. As a consequence, the margin of the lips shows a transition between the thicker and thinner skin, represented by the vermilion border. It therefore has the appearance of a sharp line between the coloured edge of the lip and adjoining skin. It has been described as a pale, white rolled border and also as being a red line. This fine line of pale skin accentuates the colour difference between the

vermilion Vermilion (sometimes vermillion) is a color family and pigment most often used between antiquity and the 19th century from the powdered mineral cinnabar (a form of mercury sulfide). It is synonymous with red orange, which often takes a moder ...

and normal skin. Along the upper lip, two adjacent elevations of the vermilion border form the

Cupid's bow The Cupid's bow is a facial feature where the double curve of a human upper lip is said to resemble a recurve bow of the sort used in ancient Greece or Rome. The name is taken from Cupid, the bow-wielding Roman god of erotic love equivalent to ...

Microanatomy

The vermilion border represents the change in the epidermis from highly

ized external skin to less keratinized internal skin. It has no

s, or

. There are two reasons that the border appears red in some people: # The epithelium is thin and therefore the blood vessels are closer to the surface. # This epithelium contains

eleidin Eleidin is clear intracellular protein which is present in the stratum lucidum of the skin. Eleidin is a transformation product of the amino acid complex keratohyalin, the lifeless matter deposited in the form of minute granules within the protopl ...

which is transparent and the blood vessels are near the surface of the papillary layer, revealing the "red blood cell" color. At the angles of the mouth, there are sebaceous glands, without hair follicles, which are called

Fordyce spots Fordyce spots (also termed Fordyce granules) are harmless and painless visible sebaceous glands typically appearing as white/yellow small bumps or spots on the inside of lips or cheeks, gums, or genitalia. They are common, and are present in a ...

Clinical significance

The ''vermilion border'' is important in

dentistry Dentistry, also known as dental medicine and oral medicine, is the branch of medicine focused on the Human tooth, teeth, gums, and Human mouth, mouth. It consists of the study, diagnosis, prevention, management, and treatment of diseases, dis ...

and

oral pathology Oral and maxillofacial pathology refers to the diseases of the mouth ("oral cavity" or "stoma"), jaws ("maxillae" or "gnath") and related structures such as salivary glands, temporomandibular joints, facial muscles and perioral skin (the skin arou ...

as a marker to detect

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

, such as in actinic cheilitis.

Associated diseases

Perioral dermatitis Perioral dermatitis, also known as periorificial dermatitis, is a common type of inflammatory skin rash. Symptoms include multiple small (1–2 mm) bumps and blisters sometimes with background redness and scale, localized to the skin aroun ...

is a rash typically around the mouth, that spares the vermilion border. * Cheilitis glandularis may present with a burning sensation over the vermilion border. This chronic progressive condition is associated with thinning of the skin of the lips and ulceration. * Infections may involve the vermilion border.

Cold sores A cold sore is a type of herpes infection caused by the herpes simplex virus that affects primarily the lip. Symptoms typically include a burning pain followed by small blisters or sores. The first attack may also be accompanied by fever, so ...

are one common infection.

Impetigo Impetigo is a contagious bacterial infection that involves the superficial skin. The most common presentation is yellowish crusts on the face, arms, or legs. Less commonly there may be large blisters which affect the groin or armpits. The les ...

is another. *

Skin cancer Skin cancers are cancers that arise from the Human skin, skin. They are due to the development of abnormal cells (biology), cells that have the ability to invade or metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. It occurs when skin cells grow ...

can also occur at the vermilion border. *

Fetal alcohol syndrome Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) are a group of conditions that can occur in a person who is exposed to alcohol during gestation. FASD affects 1 in 20 Americans, but is highly misdiagnosed and underdiagnosed. The several forms of the ...

causes facial abnormalities which include a thin vermilion border with a smooth philtrum.

Cosmetic appearance

* Sunlight exposure can blur the junction between the vermilion border and the skin. Applying

lip balm Lip balm or lip salve is a wax-like substance applied to the lips to moisturize and relieve chapped or dry lips, angular cheilitis, stomatitis, or cold sores. Lip balm often contains beeswax or carnauba wax, camphor, cetyl alcohol, lanolin, par ...

and

sunscreen Sunscreen, also known as sunblock, sun lotion or sun cream, is a photoprotection, photoprotective topical product for the Human skin, skin that helps protect against sunburn and prevent skin cancer. Sunscreens come as lotions, sprays, gels, fo ...

moisturizes protects it from sunlight.

Surgery

A vermilionectomy (sometimes spelled vermillionectomy) is the surgical removal of the vermilion border. It is sometimes performed to treat

carcinoma Carcinoma is a malignancy that develops from epithelial cells. Specifically, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that arises from cells originating in the endodermal, mesoder ...

of the lip. Close attention is given when repairing any injury to the vermilion border. Even 1 mm of vermilion misalignment could be noticeable.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vermilion Border Lips Anatomy articles about microanatomy Dermatologic terminology Face Skin anatomy