Journal of oral and maxillofacial surgery : official journal of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
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J. Oral Maxillofac. Surg. · Jul 2019
Frequency of Cervical Spine Injuries in Pediatric Craniomaxillofacial Trauma.
In pediatric patients with craniomaxillofacial (CMF) trauma, evaluation for cervical spine injury (CSI) is critical, but there are no studies investigating CSI in this unique population. The aim of this study was to measure the frequency of CSI in the pediatric CMF fracture population. ⋯ CSIs in pediatric patients with CMF fracture are rare (frequency, 0.169%); this is considerably lower than the reported ranges in adults (3.69 to 24%). No child with deciduous dentition was found to have a CSI. The lack of CSI in deciduous patients with CMF fracture could be explained by the anatomic differences between pediatric and adult cervical spines and supports conservative imaging for children in this age group (level of evidence, III).