Complex Dentoalveolar Fractures: Main Clinical Variables Description and Analysis.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To analyze and evaluate clinical features that define complex dentoalveolar trauma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-five patients, with a mean age of 36.1 years, were included in the study; most patients were male (82.2%). The main clinical features defining dentoalveolar fractures were evaluated, including the status of the tooth, alveolar socket and adjacent soft tissues and their relationships with tooth loss. The relationship between splinting and tooth loss was also studied. The data were analyzed using descriptive and statistical methods. RESULTS: A significant relationship was observed between the different clinical variables and tooth loss, in particular the status of the alveolar socket as the most relevant clinical factor; there was also a significant relationship between splinting and tooth loss, as this was the main protective factor. CONCLUSIONS: Tooth loss prognosis following complex dentoalveolar trauma is related to the clinical features of the fracture, particularly the status of the alveolar socket and the possibility of using splinting as treatment.

Rapidly Growing Facial Tumor in a 5-Year-Old Girl.

The aim of this study is to describe the clinical, radiological and histological characteristics that define lipoblastomas with special emphasis on differential diagnosis. The patient is a 5-year-old girl who consulted for a rapidly growing lower cheek tumor. This study analyzes, evaluates, and discusses the issues that need to be addressed throughout the process that affect treatment planning and provides an updated review of these rare head-and-neck tumors.

Management of a Penetrating Orbital Trauma from an Unusual Foreign Body with Associated Eye Injury.

The aim of this article is to describe the principles that should guide the management of an orbital trauma with ocular injury through an updated review of the literature and the study of a clinical case involving an 80-year-old woman who presented with a penetrating orbital wound due to a wooden foreign body with a closed ocular trauma. Satisfactory and stable results over time are determined by systematically analyzing and evaluating each aspect of the case following a surgical strategy based on the most current protocols.

Treatment of bilateral hyperplasia of the coronoid process of the mandible. Presentation of a case and review of the literature.

Bilateral hyperplasia of the coronoid process is infrequent. It consists of an elongation of the coronoid process of the mandible and is, accordingly, a mechanical problem, limiting mouth opening. This article looks at the case of a 28 year-old male with significant limitation on opening his mouth, secondary to bilateral hyperplasia of the coronoid process. We reviewed the literature and analysed the diagnostic and therapeutic procedures used, paying special attention to the surgical approaches to the coronoid process and emphasising the importance of early post-operative rehabilitation, describing our experience with the TheraBite (Atos Medical AB, PO Box 183, 242 22 Hörby, Sweden). The satisfactory result of the procedure is marked by the stable recovery of the mouth opening, achieved by a good combination of surgical and physiotherapeutic techniques.

Surgical treatment of benign parapharyngeal space tumours. Presentation of two clinical cases and revision of the literature.

Parapharyngeal space (PPS) tumours, most of them benign, account for some 0.5% of tumours of the head and neck. The importance of these tumours lies mainly in two aspects: on the one hand, the difficulty of early diagnosis, due to the lack of symptoms in the initial stages and, on the other, the extreme complications of performing surgery in the parapharyngeal region. This article discusses two clinical cases of parapharyngeal space tumours: a 45 year old man and a 60 year old woman. We revise the scientific literature and analyse the diagnostic and therapeutic procedures used, placing special emphasis on describing the different surgical approaches to the parapharyngeal space: transcervical, transcervical-transparotid, transpalatal or transoral, transmandibular and orbitozygomatic, all of which, used alone or combined with others, allow for complete resection of these tumours with minimum morbidity.

Comparison of intra-articular injection of plasma rich in growth factors versus hyaluronic acid following arthroscopy in the treatment of temporomandibular dysfunction: A randomised prospective study.

PURPOSE: The main objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the injection of plasma rich in platelet-derived growth factors (PRGF) versus hyaluronic acid (HA) following arthroscopic surgery in patients diagnosed with internal derangement of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) with osteoarthritis (OA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 100 patients were randomised into two study groups. Group A (n = 50) received an injection of PRGF, and Group B (n = 50) received an injection of HA. The mean age was 35.5 years (range 18-77 years), and 88% of the patients were women. The pain intensity (visual analogue scale) and the extent of maximum mouth opening before and after the procedure were statistically analysed. RESULTS: Better results were observed in the group treated with PRGF, with a significant reduction in pain at 18 months, compared with HA treatment. Regarding mouth opening, an increase was observed in both groups, with no significant difference. CONCLUSIONS: The injection of PRGF following arthroscopy is more effective than the injection of HA with respect to pain in patients with advanced internal derangement of the TMJ.

Complications of temporomandibular joint arthroscopy using two-portal coblation technologies: A prospective study of 475 procedures.

PURPOSE: To study the complications of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthroscopic procedures using two-portal coblation technologies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The 397 consecutive patients (475 joints) who underwent arthroscopic surgery were prospectively analyzed. RESULTS: Complications were observed in 39 (8.21%) procedures. Complications recognized during or immediately after surgery were observed in 25 cases (5.26%). Vascular injury in the points of trocar insertion was observed in seven cases. Lesions of the fibrocartilage layer of the joint secondary to introduction of instruments were observed in 12 cases. Bleeding within the superior joint space was observed in 21 cases. Extravasation of irrigation fluid appeared in five patients, affecting the oropharyngeal space in one case. In 20 patients, more than one complication at the time of surgery occurred. Delay postoperative complications were noted in 14 patients. Blood clots in the external auditory canal were found in eight cases and lacerations in two cases. One patient experienced partial hearing loss, and two patients experienced vertigo. Temporary hypoesthesia of the auriculotemporal nerve was seen in two patients. Temporary damage to the V cranial nerve was observed in four patients. Temporary paralysis of the zygomatic branch of the facial nerve was seen in one patient. CONCLUSION: TMJ arthroscopy using coblation technologies is a safe surgical procedure when performed by experienced surgeons.

Brown tumor of the mandible as first manifestation of primary hyperparathyroidism: diagnosis and treatment.

Brown tumor is one of the lesions that develop in patients with hyperparathyroidism. Any of the skeletal bones can be affected including the cranio-maxillofacial ones. Most of the times the brown tumor appears after a final diagnosis of hyperparathyroidism is made. However brown tumor can be the first clinical sign of the disease. A clinical case in which a brown tumor located in the anterior part of the mandible appears as the first sign of primary hyperparathyroidism is presented. The possible differential clinical diagnosis and the recommended treatments are revised.

Subnasal modified Le Fort I osteotomy: indications and results.

PURPOSE: To study the possible morphologic changes in the nose after subnasal modified Le Fort I maxillary osteotomy to correct class III dentofacial deformities in patients with considered normal nasal morphology. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Fifteen patients (7 males, 8 females) requiring maxillary advancement to treat class III dentofacial deformities were studied prospectively between January 2004 and January 2011. All the patients had an adequate projection of the nasal tip preoperatively preventing a conventional Le Fort I osteotomy. Patients received preoperatively (T1), 6 months after surgery (T2), and 12 months after the initial surgical procedure (T3) lateral cephalograms, CT-3D studies and clinical nose analysis to measure different morphologic variables including: the alar/nose base width, nasal tip protrusion and nasal bridge length using a digital sliding caliper directly on the soft-tissue surface of the face. RESULTS: Mean age was 26.2 years, range 20-36 years. A significant advancement of the maxilla was noted postoperatively (mean 7.5 mm). After surgery the different anthropometric variables of the nasal region analysed had not suffered any significant variation. No significant differences were found when comparing T2 with T3 measures. No significant complications were found. CONCLUSION: The results indicated that maxillary advancement using a subnasal modified Le Fort I osteotomy can prevent undesirable soft tissue changes of the nose when anterior repositioning of the maxilla is indicated in patients with preoperatively normal nasal morphology.