title: Functional and psychological impact of nasal bone fractures sustained during sports activities: A survey of 87 patients.
abstract: Nasal bone fractures that require reduction are a common sequela of sports injuries. We conducted a survey to ascertain the outcomes of patients who had experienced a nasal bone fracture and who subsequently underwent manipulation under anesthesia. We reviewed data on 217 nasal bone fractures that had been seen at our institution over a 3-year period. Of these, 133 (61.3%) had occurred as a result of a sports activity. Thirty of the 133 patients (22.6%) had been managed conservatively, while the other 103 (77.4%) had undergone manipulation under anesthesia. We were able to contact 87 of the 103 patients (84.5%) by telephone, who served as the study population. The most common sports associated with these 87 injuries were hurling (n = 26; 29.9%), rugby (n = 22; 25.3%), Gaelic football (n = 20; 23.0%), and soccer (n = 13; 14.9%). Patients who had undergone treatment within 2 weeks were significantly more satisfied with their outcome than were those who had been treated later (p < 0.01). Twenty-six patients (29.9%) reported that their injury had had a detrimental impact on their subsequent performance in their sport; 12 (13.8%) described a fear of reinjury when they returned to play, 7 (8.0%) experienced functional problems, 3 (3.4%) complained of diminished performance, and 4 others (4.6%) quit playing contact sports altogether. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to demonstrate that a fracture of the nasal bones may have a notable psychological impact on an athlete and that it can lead to diminished performance or a complete withdrawal from contact sports.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University Hospital Limerick, Dooradoyle, Limerick, Ireland. paullennon81@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lennon
authors.forename: Sam
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jaber
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Fenton
mesh_terms: D056352:Athletes / Q000523:psychology*; D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009295:Nasal Bone / Q000293:injuries*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D000068958:Return to Sport / Q000523:psychology; D012887:Skull Fractures / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D061665:Time-to-Treatment; D016896:Treatment Outcome