• Rebecca Stier, Frank Tavassol, Claudia Dupke, Maria Rüter, Philipp Jehn, Nils-Claudius Gellrich, and Simon Spalthoff.
• Department of Facial Surgery, Catholic Children's Hospital, Wilhelmstift, Liliencronstrasse 130, 22149, Hamburg, Germany.
• Eur J Trauma Emerg Surg. 2022 Aug 1; 48 (4): 2539-2546.

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to estimate the effect of the mechanism of trauma (fall versus kick), rider demographics, equestrian experience, protective equipment, and whether or not a horse was shod on the anatomic site of a horse-related maxillofacial fracture, operating time, postoperative complication rate, and length of hospital stay.MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients treated for horse-related maxillofacial fractures at a single institution in Germany between January 2000 and March 2015. We used linear and logistic regression to test the above-mentioned variables for statistical correlations.ResultsDuring the study period, we treated 138 horse-related facial fractures in 71 patients. The mean patient age was 34.5 years, and 80.3% of the injuries occurred in women. Most of the maxillofacial fractures were the result of a horse kick (71.8%) when unmounted and the majority occurred in more experienced riders (70.4%). There was a significant association of wearing of protective equipment with a shorter hospital stay and lower risk of postoperative complications.ConclusionMore education is needed in the equestrian community regarding the use of protective equipment when unmounted. Safety helmets should be redesigned to include a faceguard and be worn at all times.© 2020. The Author(s).

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