Repair of frontal sinus fractures: clinical and radiological long-term outcomes.

OBJECTIVE: The long-term clinical and radiological outcomes of patients surgically treated for frontal sinus fracture were assessed. METHODS: A retrospective, single-centre analysis was conducted of patients treated for frontal sinus fracture in a tertiary trauma centre between 2000 and 2017. Patients who underwent surgical repair for frontal sinus fracture followed by clinical and radiographical evaluation for at least six months were included. RESULTS: Of 338 patients admitted with frontal sinus fracture, 77 were treated surgically. Thirty patients met the inclusion criteria for long-term follow-up. The average follow-up duration was 37 months (range, 6-132 months). Reconstruction, obliteration and cranialisation of the frontal sinus fracture were performed in 14, 9 and 7 patients, respectively. Two patients with a reconstructed frontal sinus and one with an obliterated frontal sinus developed mucoceles. One patient developed forehead disfigurement following obliteration. CONCLUSION: Long-term complications of frontal sinus repair using the chosen repair techniques are rare, but patients need to be made aware of these potential complications.

Osteonecrosis of the jaw induced by orally administered bisphosphonates: incidence, clinical features, predisposing factors and treatment outcome.

UNLABELLED: Osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) is a well-known devastating side effect of bisphosphonate therapy for cancer. Several ONJ cases of patients using oral bisphosphonates have been reported in the literature. The present study analyzed the clinical features, predisposing factors, and treatment outcome of 11 patients with oral bisphosphonates-related ONJ. INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) is a well-known side effect of parenteral bisphosphonates therapy. Although ONJ has been reported in patients using oral bisphosphonates, documentation of this entity is sparse. It was hypothesized that the clinical features, predisposing factors, and treatment outcome of this population are different from those of oncologic patients. METHODS: This retrospective bi-central study involved 98 ONJ patients, 13 of whom were treated with oral bisphosphonates. Two patients were excluded because of previous use of intravenous bisphosphonates. The profiles of 11 patients were analyzed. RESULTS: The mean duration of alendronate use before developing ONJ was 4.1 years. ONJ was triggered by dental surgery in 9 patients and by ill-fitted dentures in 2. Heavy smokers were the most recalcitrant subjects. Among the nine patients with at least 6 months of follow-up, ONJ healed completely in three, partially in four, and not at all in two. CONCLUSIONS: ONJ is a rare devastating side effect of oral bisphosphonates associated with patient morbidity and high financial burden. Clinicians must be aware of this entity and inform patients of the risks of dental surgery. The synergistic effect of smoking in the pathogenesis of ONJ should be further investigated.

[Medical treatment of central giant cell granuloma of the jaws].

Central giant cell granuloma (CGCG) is a benign intraosseous lesion of the jaws that is found predominantly in children and young adults. The lesion appears mostly in the mandible and presents as a unilocular or multilocular radiolucent defect. Although it is benign, it may be locally aggressive, causing extensive bone destruction, tooth displacement and root resorption. Two variants of the lesion, non-aggressive and aggressive, have been described. Traditionally, CGCG was treated surgically with aggressive curettage and peripheral ostectomy. The more aggressive type or recurrent lesions require wide resection, that lead to major defects in the jaws. This form of surgical treatment could be particularly disfiguring for a child or young adult. An alternative, non-surgical approach, was developed during the past several years. The present review describes several medical treatments available for CGCG that have been reported in the literature, such as corticosteroids, calcitonin and Interferon Alfa-2a. These alternatives are advantageous for large aggressive lesions in order to cure, or reduce the size of the lesion and thus minimize the need for extensive surgical resection that could result in functional and esthetic deficits.

Pretreatment prevalence of hypothyroidism in patients with head and neck carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Hypothyroidism in the normal population age > 60 years is encountered in the range of 0.5-5% clinically, and 5-20% have subclinical hypofunction. Hypothyroidism is recognized as a common complication of treatment in patients with head and neck carcinoma (HNC) and is reported in up to 75% of patients who receive combined treatment. Surprisingly, base-line pretreatment measurements of thyroid function in large series of patients have not been reported. METHODS: Serum thyroid-stimulating hormone, free T4, and total T3 levels were recorded in 110 patients with nonthyroid HNC prior to treatment in a prospective, controlled study. RESULTS: The mean patient age (+/- standard deviation) was 65 years +/- 13.8 years, and 82% of patients had squamous cell carcinoma. A diagnosis of hypothyroidism already was established in 4.5% of patients, and subclinical hypothyroidism was discovered in an additional 6.4% of patients. Sixteen patients had other equivocal anomalies in thyroid function and were referred for further endocrine evaluation. No patients with formerly unrecognized clinical hypothyroidism were found. CONCLUSIONS: Hypothyroidism in patients with head and neck carcinoma in Israel corresponds with the reported incidence in the general population. Hypothyroidism after treatment for head and neck carcinoma stems from the effects of treatment. The need for pretreatment evaluation of thyroid function should be considered.

Pain in the neck after neck dissection.

BACKGROUND: Reports of disability after neck dissection have been directed toward shoulder dysfunction and pain. We could find no report addressing the issue of pain localized to the actual operative site. We have conducted a combined prospective and retrospective study of pain in patients undergoing neck dissection. METHODS: Eighty-eight disease-free patients were evaluated in 3 groups for neck pain. One group was followed up prospectively for 1 to 8 months after surgery, and 2 retrospective groups were followed up for more than 2 years or for 6 months to 2 years. Pain was assessed by a body map and visual analog scale. RESULTS: None of 31 patients followed up for more than 2 years reported neck pain. Four of 27 patients followed up for 6 to 24 months had pain, with a mean visual analog scale score of 3.7. Seventy percent of the prospective group of 30 patients had pain during the first postoperative week, and only 1 patient had pain persisting for more than 2 months. Shoulder pain and disability after radical neck dissection were encountered in all groups, comparable with the incidence reported in the literature. No postoperative neuromas were found. CONCLUSIONS: Chronic pain localized to the operative site is an uncommon occurrence even after radical neck dissection. Chronic pain in the shoulder region may follow radical neck dissection, whereas modified neck dissection is usually a painless procedure.

Risk factors contributing to symptomatic plate removal in maxillofacial trauma patients.

This study analyzed the fate of plates used to correct maxillofacial injuries and defined risk factors that eventually resulted in plate removal. The outpatient clinic files of 108 patients treated with rigid internal fixation after maxillofacial trauma were reviewed. Study variables included age, sex, trauma circumstances, diagnosis, type of fracture, approach to the facial skeleton, presence of teeth in the line of fracture, plate material, site of plates, and reasons for plate removal. Of 204 plates used for fixation, 44 plates (22 percent) were removed. When all factors were considered together, only fracture diagnosis (mandibular body and angle) and plate location (mandibular body and angle) were statistically significant. Only when each factor was considered separately, the approach to the facial skeleton (intraoral) and the type of fracture (comminuted and compound fractures) were statistically associated with plate removal. Selection of favorable plate location, the extraoral approach, and vigilant infection control may reduce plate removal in patients with maxillofacial injuries. Special attention should be given to compound and comminuted fractures of the mandibular body and angle.

[Sport-related maxillofacial fractures].

The records of 537 patients with 750 maxillofacial fractures were reviewed and analyzed. 55 (10.2%) had sport-related injuries and the rest were due to other causes. The sport-related group was predominantly male (ratio 9:1) with a mean age of 24.5 years. The mandible was most commonly injured (52.5%), followed by the zygomatic complex (32.8%). The incidence of complicated mid-facial fractures was only 2.8%, and of comminuted fractures 9%. This distribution of injuries is most likely due to the relatively low-energy of trauma associated with many sport activities. The relatively low mean age of the patients, most of whom had full dentition, allowed for conservative treatment of most of the mandibular fractures, using closed reduction. Injuries were caused by 11 different sports. The highest incidence was soccer (45%), followed by skating (15%), basketball (9%) and horse-riding (9%). Contact sports were the cause of injuries in 72.2%, with the highest incidence of trauma due to impact with another player (60%). Better protection of the oral and maxillofacial region is needed, especially during high-contact sport.

The influence of the osteotomy slope on bony changes after advancement genioplasty.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to develop a prediction method for advancement genioplasty that would result in accurate preoperative cephalometric planning of the osteotomy slope and that could be transferred to the patient during the surgical procedure. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Serial cephalometric tracings of 20 patients who underwent advancement genioplasty were retrospectively analyzed. The osteotomy slope angle was defined as the angle between the osteotomy and a line perpendicular to the occlusal plane. The measured angle was compared with the calculated angle deduced from the horizontal and vertical genial postoperative changes. RESULTS: The measured osteotomy slope angle closely resembled the calculated angle. CONCLUSIONS: The close similarity between the calculated and measured osteotomy slope angles in this study shows that simple mathematical calculations can be applied clinically to aid surgeons in achieving a more predictable result. The osteotomy slope can be determined early in the prediction stage as a calculated figure based on the desired horizontal and vertical movements of the chin and can be transferred to the patient's chin during the surgical stage.

Life-threatening bleeding following maxillofacial trauma.

Life-threatening bleeding associated with facial trauma is considered rare, and most references on this subject do not recommend a precise treatment plan. The purpose of the present study is to review the origin of bleeding and various treatment methods, and to formulate a plan of management for these patients, emphasizing the role of the maxillofacial surgeon in the immediate intervention to control the bleeding. 222 patients with midface fractures were treated between 1985 to 1990. 10 of them had severe and life-threatening bleeding on admission. Bleeding was controlled by nasal packing (9 patients) combined with temporary fracture reduction (7 patients).

Recovery of the infraorbital nerve after zygomatic complex fractures: a preliminary study of different treatment methods.

The infraorbital nerve (ION) is often involved in trauma to the zygomatic complex (ZC), resulting in sensory disturbance of the area innervated by it. The purpose of the study was to compare the incidence of persistent sensory disturbance after recovery from isolated simple fractures of the ZC, with four treatment methods: 1) closed reduction via subcutaneous approach without fixation; 2) open reduction via subcutaneous approach without fixation; 3) open reduction via oroantral approach and support of the complex by an intraantral Foley catheter; and 4) open reduction via Gillies approach with fixation of the frontozygomatic (FZ) fracture with wire osteosynthesis, and open reduction via Gillies approach with fixation of the FZ fracture with miniplate osteosynthesis. Analysis revealed that patients treated with miniplate osteosynthesis exhibited a trend for higher recovery rate of the (ION) than with the other three methods. No significant differences were found among the other three methods.

[Management of fractures of the face].

During 1985-1989, 371 patients with fractures of the lower two thirds of the facial skeleton were treated. Mean age was 31.2 years and there was a male prevalence of 78%. An equal distribution was found between fractures of the middle and lower third of the face. Our clinical experience has shown that it is preferable to start treatment as early as possible, using an open approach for reduction of fractures and rigid methods of fixation. Rigid internal fixation enables the patient to keep his jaws functional postoperatively and prevents the need for maxillomandibular fixation for 6 weeks. 6-month follow-up showed a low incidence of bone infection (1.5%), although most fractures were exposed to contaminated spaces. The major complication of treatment was impaired sensation of the lips and infraorbital regions (23%). In a follow-up of up to 1 year, the occurrence of this complication decreased to 7%.