Rehabilitation Surgery for Peripheral Facial Nerve Injury after Facial Trauma.

Introduction Facial trauma can cause damage to the facial nerve, which can have negative effects on function, aesthetics, and quality of life if left untreated. Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of peripheral facial nerve direct end-to-end anastomosis and/or nerve grafting surgery for patients with facial nerve injury after facial trauma. Methods Fifty-nine patients with peripheral facial nerve paralysis after facial injuries underwent facial nerve rehabilitation surgery from November 2017 to December 2021 at Ho Chi Minh City National Hospital of Odontology. Results All 59 cases of facial trauma with damage to the peripheral facial nerve underwent facial nerve reconstruction surgery within 8 weeks of the injury. Of these cases, 25/59 (42.3%) had end-to-end anastomosis, 22/59 (37.3%) had nerve grafting, and 12/59 (20.4%) had a combination of nerve grafting and end-to-end anastomosis. After surgery, the rates of moderate and good recovery were 78.4% and 11.8%, respectively. All facial paralysis measurements showed statistically significant improvement after surgery, including the Facial Nerve Grading Scale 2.0 (FNGS 2.0) score, the Facial Clinimetric Evaluation (FaCE) scale, and electroneurography. The rate of synkinesis after surgery was 34%. Patient follow-up postoperatively ranged from 6 to > 36 months; 51 out of 59 patients (86.4%) were followed-up for at least 12 months or longer. Conclusion Nerve rehabilitation surgery including direct end-to-end anastomosis and nerve grafting is effective in cases of peripheral facial nerve injury following facial trauma. The surgery helps restore nerve conduction and improve facial paralysis.

Reducing Surgical Risks in a Rhytidectomy.

Complications after rhytidectomy will occur even in the best of circumstances. Establishing a good rapport with the patient, taking a thorough history and physical exam to elicit potential risk factors such as hypertension or a bleeding diathesis, enlisting staff members to help understand a patient's goals, psychology, and supports, as well as setting realistic expectations help both the surgeon and the patient navigate the journey of surgery toward a successful outcome. Lastly, understanding how to manage potential complications when they arise, in a supportive and caring manner, is vital to the patient relationship and end result: a happy and satisfied patient.

The Anatomic Landmark Approach to Extratemporal Facial Nerve Repair in Facial Trauma.

Objective In this study, we aimed to examine the topical anatomic landmarks of the facial nerve (facial nerve areas) and their application in cases of extratemporal facial nerve injury in maxillofacial trauma. Materials and methods We analyzed 25 maxillofacial trauma patients with facial paralysis who underwent facial nerve reanimation surgery at the Ho Chi Minh City National Hospital of Odonto-Stomatology. The characteristics of each trauma case, including the mechanism of injury, the length of the facial injury, and the location/position of injury, were recorded. The association of the injured nerves with the trauma characteristics and the external landmarks of the facial danger zones was analyzed. Results The buccal branches had the highest rate of paralysis (22/25 cases), followed by zygomatic branches (15/25), frontal branches (11/25), marginal branches (6/25), and the main trunk (1/25). There were four areas related to the external facial nerve landmarks (facial nerve areas) that helped us find the affected nerves: wounds in Area 1 resulted in frontal branch paralysis in five out of eight cases (62.5%); wounds in Area 2 resulted in zygomatic branch paralysis in 8/13 cases (61.5%) and buccal branch paralysis in 12/12 cases (100%); wounds in Area 3 resulted in marginal branch paralysis in 5/10 cases (50%); and wounds in Area 4 alone resulted in main trunk paralysis in one out of four cases or at least two main branches in three out of four cases. Conclusion Extratemporal facial paralysis after facial trauma can be complex and highly variable, leading to difficulty in finding and repairing facial nerves. Thorough clinical examination and evaluation of trauma characteristics can aid in the identification of facial paralysis and repair. Mapping facial wounds using the four anatomic surface landmarks (Areas 1-4 as outlined in this research) helped us anticipate which branches might be traumatized and estimate the position of the distal and proximal endings to repair the nerves in all cases.

Mandibular angle fractures: two-miniplate fixation and complications.

BACKGROUND: Noncompression monocortical miniplate fixation of the mandibular angle is an accepted and reliable method for providing rigid internal fixation. High complication rates have been reported for internal fixation of angle fractures. OBJECTIVE: To analyze the outcome and complications in cases in which patients were treated with 2-miniplate fixation at the mandibular angle. DESIGN: A retrospective analysis of outcomes for a case series. SETTING: Treatment performed at a level 1 trauma-rated teaching hospital. METHODS: From May 1992 to September 2001, a total of 88 patients with angle fractures of the mandible were treated with 2-miniplate fixation. Sixty-eight of the 88 patients, with 70 angle fractures, were included in the study; 13 were unavailable for follow-up and 7 had less than the minimum follow-up of 6 weeks. The time of trauma to treatment, cause of injury, and associated fractures were recorded. Postoperative complications, including infection, malunion, nonunion, dehiscence, osteomyelitis, and nerve injury due to surgical manipulation, were tabulated. Follow-up examinations were performed up to 12 weeks after surgery, with additional examinations if necessary. Postreduction panoramic radiographs were obtained in most cases. RESULTS: No patients treated with monocortical 2-miniplate fixation had malunion, nonunion, or osteomyelitis. Twelve (17.6%) of the 68 patients were identified as having at least 1 postoperative complication. Postoperative infection occurred in 2 patients (2.9%). Infection was controlled with oral antibiotic therapy. One patient required removal of miniplates after the acute phase resolved. Occlusal disturbances were noted in 4 patients (5.9%) (2 with a slight anterior open bite, 1 with a crossbite, and 1 with premature contact of a molar) after surgery. Three of the 4 patients had associated midfacial or multiple mandibular fractures. None required further surgery. Wound dehiscence, with exposure of an underlying plate, occurred in 4 patients (5.9%); the wounds were treated conservatively and subsequently resolved. Nerve injury due to surgical manipulation occurred in 3 patients (4.4%). CONCLUSIONS: Monocortical 2-miniplate fixation of the mandibular angle is a reliable and effective technique for providing rigid fixation. The complications were minimal in our study, and the infection rate was 2.9%, which is comparable to or better than the infection rate reported with the use of a single miniplate fixation technique in other studies. Disturbances of occlusion were associated with midfacial or additional mandibular fractures. In view of the contradictory published results, further studies are needed to determine the ideal approach for noncompression monocortical plate fixation of angle fractures.

The coronal incision: sinusoidal, sawtooth, and postauricular techniques.

The coronal incision is a popular and versatile surgical approach for access to the cranial vault and the upper two thirds of the facial skeleton. It provides excellent exposure to allow neurosurgical access, craniofacial osteotomies, repair of facial fractures, calvarial bone grafting, and cosmetic procedures such as the forehead lift. Since the introduction and acceptance of the coronal approach, a variety of modifications of the incision have been used, including methods for camouflaging the incision in the hair. To quickly and easily produce a sinusoidal or sawtooth coronal incision line with or without postauricular extension, a tape measure is positioned at the level of the anteriormost point of the auricular helix. A mark is made every 2 cm on alternating sides of the tape measure. The tape measure is advanced coronally until the vertex of the skull is reached, and the procedure is repeated on the contralateral side. After the tape measure is removed, the resulting regularly spaced marks are connected in a sinusoidal or a sawtooth fashion. A postauricular incision can be easily extended from either the sinusoidal or sawtooth coronal template.