The Journal of craniofacial surgery
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Pneumomediastinum (PM) secondary to an isolated orbital blow-out fracture is a rare but potentially severe and life-threatening complication. Fortunately, airway obstruction, pneumothorax, pneumopericardium, and mediastinitis are rare complications of PM. ⋯ We report here the rare case of a patient with PM after isolated orbital fracture. Only 3 similar cases have been previously reported in the literature.
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Foreign bodies are often encountered by oral and maxillofacial surgeons and may present a diagnostic challenge to the trauma surgeon due to many factors such as the size of the object, the difficult access, and a close anatomic relationship of the foreign body to vital structures. They are usually a result of injuries or operations. Fragments of broken instruments can be left behind and entire teeth or their fragments can be displaced during extraction. ⋯ With a view to illustrating and discussing the diagnosis and treatment of this kind of injury, this study reports impacted foreign bodies in oral and maxillofacial region. The following data were collected: age, sex, race, etiology, occurrence of fracture, anatomic location of the fracture, daytime of the traumatic event, type of the object, signal and symptoms, type of imaging examination used, type of anesthesia, approach, transoperative complication, period between surgery and hospital liberation, and the occurrence of death. Foreign body injuries in the maxillofacial region can place the patient's life at risk, so a correct initial treatment performed by a multidisciplinary team increases the survival of this kind of patient.
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This study evaluates 22 patients with retained foreign bodies in the maxillofacial region that were all caused by penetrating missile injuries. Surgical intervention for the retrieval of the foreign bodies was carried out in 20 patients through the existing wounds and through separate incisions; all patients were followed up for a minimum of 2 months during which all the complications were registered and managed. ⋯ All patients developed complications that were categorized in this study into those that result from the injury itself and those that occur because of the retrieval procedure, the latter category being mostly easily managed. In general, all foreign bodies in the maxillofacial region should be removed; the surgeon involved should weigh the benefits and the perils of the removal, and the patient should be well informed about the possibility of the failure of removal of the foreign body.