Management of severe maxillo-facial injuries.
Maxillo-facial injuries have increased in incidence in Singapore due mainly to road traffic accidents. Approximately 450 cases are seen annually in the Singapore General Hospital. A review of 50 consecutive cases of severe maxillo-facial injuries seen in the Department of Plastic Surgery showed that the majority were Lefort II type fractures (64%) followed by Lefort I fractures (14%) and Lefort III fractures (8%). There were seven cases which had a combination of multiple facial fractures. The significant associated injuries occurred in the limbs (32%), the head (30%) and in the chest (8%). The emergency management of maxillo-facial trauma is discussed in some detail and some of the problems in the treatment of severe or multiple facial fractures are also highlighted in this paper.
D000328:Adult; D000402:Airway Obstruction / Q000517:prevention & control; D004630:Emergencies; D004954:Esthetics; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005592:Fracture Fixation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007572:Jaw Fractures / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008446:Maxillofacial Injuries / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009917:Orbital Fractures / Q000601:surgery; D010159:Palate / Q000293:injuries; D014140:Tracheotomy; D015051:Zygomatic Fractures / Q000601:surgery