"Typical" basal skull fracture of both petrous bones: an unreliable indicator of head impact site.
A basilar skull fracture that extends along both petrous bones is generally considered to be a response to impacts to the lateral aspects of the head. This generalization is not warranted as such a fracture often results from impacts to any point around the base of the skull or to the chin. These facts were appreciated as long ago as 1905 but present-day literature does not adequately reflect them. Eight carefully selected autopsy cases of fatal blunt head injury with well-documented single head impact sites and bilateral petrous bone fractures are presented. They illustrate the variety of impact sites that may produce bilateral petrous bone skull fractures.
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D005554:Forensic Medicine; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009777:Occipital Bone / Q000293:injuries; D010579:Petrous Bone / Q000293:injuries*; D012887:Skull Fractures / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*; D014949:Wounds, Nonpenetrating / Q000473:pathology*