title: The consequences of orofacial trauma resulting from violence: a study in Porto.
abstract: Orofacial injuries resulting from violence are a fairly common event. In Portugal, however, the impact of these injuries remains to be elucidated. This study aims to analyze the injuries and permanent consequences of orofacial trauma (in a three-dimensional perspective: organic, functional and situational), resulting from violence. To do so, a retrospective analysis of all violence-related forensic reports performed in the North Branch of the National Institute of Legal Medicine, during 2007, was carried out (n = 513). It was found that most victims were men with a mean age of 35.4 (SD = 15.1). Most aggressions were due to punches and/or kicks. The most frequent orofacial injuries were lip injuries (57.7%), followed by extra-oral soft tissue injuries (35.9%), gingival and oral mucosa injuries (29.2%), and teeth and/or periodontal injuries (17.5%). The most frequent long-term consequences concerned the teeth and periodontal area (14.0%), followed by the lip area (7.4%), and gingival and oral mucosa tissues (3.9%). In terms of the effect on functions and life situations, it was found that chewing and embarrassment in social life events were the most prevalent (43.6% and 83.6%, respectively). These results showed that orofacial trauma from violence-related events can damage a person's quality of life, especially those concerning the teeth area, as a result of their implications in normal function and in life situations.
authors.affiliation: Dentistry Faculty of Porto University, Porto, Portugal. icaldas@fmd.up.pt
authors.forename: Inês Morais
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Caldas
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Magalhães
authors.forename: Américo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Afonso
authors.forename: Eduarda
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Matos
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005151:Facial Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005881:Gingiva / Q000293:injuries; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008046:Lip / Q000293:injuries; D008297:Male; D008409:Mastication / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009055:Mouth / Q000293:injuries*; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000293:injuries; D010519:Periodontium / Q000293:injuries; D011174:Portugal / Q000453:epidemiology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D017695:Soft Tissue Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D018677:Tooth Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology; D015599:Trauma Severity Indices; D014754:Violence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014949:Wounds, Nonpenetrating / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult