Sports-based distribution of facial fractures – findings from a four-season country

Authors

  • Tero Puolakkainen a Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
  • Olli-Jussi Murros a Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
  • Anne Abio b Injury Epidemiology and Prevention Research Group, Turku Brain Injury Centre, Division of Clinical Neurosciences, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, Finland; c Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
  • Hanna Thorén d Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Institute of Dentistry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland; e Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland, Finland
  • Johanna Snäll a Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1080/00016357.2021.1980609

Keywords:

Facial fractures, ice hockey, trauma, sports

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to elucidate the relationship between injury mechanisms and sports-related facial fractures, and to evaluate the changes in incidence rates of facial fractures sustained in sports-related events in a 30-year period.

Material and methods

This retrospective cohort study included all patients sports-related facial fractures admitted to a tertiary trauma centre during 2013–2018. Specific fracture types, sports, injury mechanisms as well as patient- and injury related variables are presented. The results underwent evaluated statistically with logistic regression analysis.

Results

Facial fractures occurred most frequently while playing ice hockey and football. Unilateral zygomatic-maxillary-orbital and isolated mandibular fractures accounted for 74.2% of all fracture types. In total, 99 patients (46.5%) required surgical intervention for their facial injuries. About 12.7% of patients sustained associated injuries in addition to facial fractures. Overall, the number of sports-related facial fractures has increased during the last three decades mostly due to the surging rates of ice hockey- and football-related facial fractures.

Conclusions

Sport-related facial fractures have markedly increased in different sports disciplines during the past decades. The use of safety gear to protect the facial area should be enforced particularly in ice hockey.

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Published

2022-04-03

Issue

Vol. 80 No. 3 (2022): Acta Odontologica Scandinavica

Section

Articles