Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Medicine - Department of Forensic Medicine Toxicology

BACKGROUND: Maxillofacial injuries are commonly encountered in the practice of emergency medicine and are often associated with high morbidity resulting from increased costs of care and varying degrees of physical, functional and cosmetic distortion. It is estimated that more than 50% of patients with these injuries have multiple trauma requiring coordinated management between different specialities. PATIENTS & METHODS: This study is a descriptive prospective study. It was conducted on 70 patients admitted to kasr Al-Ainy hospital during the period from 1st of May 2018 to 31st of December 2018 with maxillofacial injuries after approval of the ethical committee. The demographic data of all patients and characteristics of the injuries were determined. RESULTS: The most affected age group was 21-30 years old (41.4%). Fifty nine patients (84.3%) were males and eleven (15.7%) were females. The highest proportion of injuries occurred in rural areas. Road traffic accidents were the most common cause of injuries and mandibular fracture was the commonest encountered fracture. Injuries were mainly unintentional and most of cases were treated surgically by open reduction and internal fixation. Conclusion and Recommendation: Road traffic crashes remain the major etiology of maxillofacial injuries so measures on prevention of road traffic accidents should be strongly emphasized in order to reduce the occurrence of these injuries. Strict legislation about the use of helmets by motorcyclists and seat belts by front seat occupants should be followed

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