Treatment of jaw and Facial Fractures

The jaw and face are one of the most vulnerable parts of the body, most vulnerable to injury and trauma. Injuries occur in bones and soft tissues depending on the severity of the blow. The treatment of these traumas, which can result from soft tissue injury to bone fractures, is shaped according to different clinical scenarios. Jaw and face area from bottom to top; It consists of lower jawbone (mandible), upper jawbone (maxilla), cheekbone and its extension (zygoma and arch), eyeball bones (orbita), forehead bone (frontal bone), and different treatment methods are applied in cases occurring in each region. Complex surgical operations may be required in the treatment of fractures in the bones of the face and jaw area. These injuries are cases that can take a long time to treat.

Jaw Fractures

Jaw fractures that occur as a result of heavy blows are mostly treatable. As a result of the blow to the jaw, the lower jaw is usually damaged and may cause loosening of the teeth in the jaw fracture area.

What are the Symptoms of Jaw Fractures?

Symptoms of jaw fractures appear as swelling in the jaw, pain and pain in jaw movements, loosening of the teeth, difficulty in eating and bleeding in the mouth. In addition to swelling, bruising also occurs in the broken jaw. In addition to swelling, bruising also occurs in the broken jaw. When symptoms of jaw fracture are observed, the patient should immediately see a jaw surgeon specialist.

Treatment of Jaw Fractures

The aim of the treatment is to restore the jaw fracture, to ensure a healthy relationship between the teeth, and to help the patient perform chewing and speaking functions without any problems. For this purpose, plates, screws, prostheses, wires or special splints are used for treatment. The jaw is fixed in the correct position with these special medical products and is expected to fuse.

• Fractures observed in the upper jaw (maxilla) are divided into three as LeFort-1, LeFort-2 and LeFort-3 according to the area affected by the fracture line. If bite function is impaired as a result of these fractures, surgery is applied for treatment. In the treatment of upper jaw fracture, the incision is made through the mouth and the two bones are fixed to each other with titanium plate screws, taking into account the harmony of the upper jaw and lower jaw. After the surgical intervention, the lower jaw and the upper jaw are tied together with rubber for approximately 2-3 weeks, and the jaw is expected to heal by ensuring correct closure.
• Treatment of lower jaw (mandible) fractures varies according to the region of the fracture. In some cases, it is more difficult to reach the area in fractures close to the jaw joint. The reason for this is that the nerve known as the facial nerve, which provides facial movements and mimics of the fracture, passes through an area close to the jaw joint in front of the ear. In this case, only the jaws are connected to each other by rubber bands. If this treatment method does not work, an incision is made under the jaw and in front of the ear and treatment is performed with plate screws. After this surgical operation applied in the treatment of mandibular fracture, the lower and upper jaws remain connected to each other with rubber for approximately 2-3 weeks."

Other Facial Fractures

Fractures in the facial bones due to severe trauma can be successfully treated with plate and screw systems. Eyeball fractures, cheekbone fractures and forehead fractures are usually caused by work, home and traffic accidents. Facial fracture surgery may consist of a detailed surgical operation or simpler operations performed under local anesthesia, depending on the condition of the area affected by the accident.

• Cheekbone Fractures: Cheekbone fractures, called zygoma fractures, occur as fractures of the main body of the bone or fractures of this body extending to the front of the ear and called zygoma arc fracture. In arch fractures, surgical operation may be required if there is a limitation in the mouth opening or if there is a collapse in the region. These surgical operations usually do not require general anesthesia, operations are performed with local anesthesia. In order to take the arch to its right place, an incision of about 2 cm is made through the hair and the arch is taken to its right place by entering it. If a fracture has occurred in the main body of the cheekbone, a much more comprehensive surgical operation is required. In such a case, it is entered through the eyelid and mouth and the bone is brought into the correct position. After the bone takes the correct position, titanium plate is fixed at 2-3 points with screws.
• Eyeball Fractures: The operation to be performed develops depending on the eye-related changes. Any change in visual function such as gaze limitations and double vision in the traumatized person may result in the decision of surgery. During this surgical operation, an incision is usually made through the eyelids. By entering through these incisions, the eyeball walls are reached and the broken parts are corrected. If the missing bone is not observed as a result of the correction process, the fixation process is performed with titanium plate screws. In a possible bone deficiency in the base of the eyeball, the deficiency is eliminated with bone grafts taken from the body or biomedical substances called medpor.
• Forehead Bone Fractures: Mostly, fractures of the forehead, which cause additional medical problems in the patient, occur as a result of serious traumas. In fractures that occur only in the outer layer of the forehead and cause visual disturbances in this region, the incision is made through the hair. The bone is corrected by entering through the opened incision and fixed with titanium screws. If there are multi-part fractures on the inside of the bone that cannot be corrected, neurosurgeons are also involved in the operation."