It is easy to overlook an area of our body that we don't see: our Scalp. However, neglecting proper care can result in the development of conditions that will undoubtedly require focus. As the Scalp is essentially an extension of the face, it is also prone to irritation, itchiness, and dryness.
The Scalp is a physical barrier that protects the skull from injury and illness and produces hair. The Scalp thus fulfills both a utilitarian and an aesthetic role.
A healthy scalp indeed encourages healthy hair, but that's not all. The Scalp is its beast to tackle, requiring much different care than the hair. It would be best not to view your Scalp by your strands but as an extension of the face.
Keeping the Scalp in homeostasis is to balance the scalp microbiome.
The Scalp is a marginal area and is less documented than the other areas of the face or skin, especially in the medical aesthetic field, but it is becoming increasingly important not only for cosmetics but also for the medical device-qualified products market.
Why is it a must to take good care of your Scalp?
A good reason is the scalp ages faster than the facial skin, and with age, the Tran epidermal water loss, the sebum level, and the temperature decrease, so if you think of the needs of your hair to be healthy, I guess there is no doubt that your Scalp deserves the best products and care.
Hair grows from individual follicles located on the Scalp. Each follicle's sebaceous glands secrete sebum, or oil, which conditions the skin and hair. People produce different amounts of oil on their scalps, with some producing far less (or much more) than others. Pulling the hair stimulates the sensory nerve endings that wrap around each hair bulb at the base of the hair follicle, alerting us to pain sensations. The subcutaneous tissue and skin covering the cranial vault bones are called the "scalp."
Anatomically, the Scalp is a surface that extends to the cranial convexity; its boundaries are anteriorly the supraorbital margins of the frontal bone, laterally the temporal fascia, which attaches to the zygomatic arch and the temporal bone, and finally posteriorly the occipital bone.
Concerning the layers of the Scalp – going from the surface to the deep structures, there are five primary layers, then you find the skull bones, the meninges, and the brain. The primary five layers are the skin, the connective tissue, the aponeurosis, the loose connective tissue, and the pericardium.
To remember these layers, remember the acronym made from the first letters of the layers: SCALP.
Interestingly enough, the Scalp has a unique olfactory receptor called OR2AT4, and they are activated so that hair follicles can sense smells and specific scents. The thickness of the epidermis decreases with age, but the thickness of the skin (epidermis and dermis) increases as we age.
The connective tissue under the skin is primarily adipose tissue, and many blood vessels and cutaneous nerve tissues are terminating there.
At the aponeurotic level, you find the frontalis and occipitalis muscles connected by the galea aponeurotic.
These three layers function together; the anatomy often calls it the Scalp proper.
The loose connective tissue has the areolar connective tissue, and this is where blood and puss have a possible route from the LCT through the emissary's veins into the cranial cavity. Therefore, it is a danger zone for passive infections. The last layer is the pericranium, or the periosteum, found outside the skull bone.
The cutaneous innervation of the Scalp is divided into three parts: posterior, anterior, and lateral Scalp.
The supratrochlear and supraorbital nerves innervate the interior Scalp, the larger and lesser occipital nerves the posterior Scalp, and the zygomaticotemporal and auriculotemporal nerves the lateral Scalp.
All these nerves are responsible for the wonderful sensation of a scalp massage.
Regarding the vascular supply of the Scalp, we have both the internal and external carotid arteries' branches.
External CA has the posterior auricular artery and the superficial temporal artery. Internal CA has the supratrochlear and supraorbital arteries. The Scalp is very rich in anastomosis connections, and because of that, there is a really rich blood supply in this area of the body, which makes it very easy to give off a lot of heat there.
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