Mandibular fractures caused by sports: a descriptive clinical study of 72 patients managed in a tertiary health facility

Background: There is need to understand the nature of sports-related traumatic injuries to the oro-facial region in an environment due to increasing popularity of sports.Objective: To report the prevalence, characteristics, treatment approach and outcome of mandibular fractures sustained through sports.Patients and Methods: This is a descriptive clinical study that evaluated mandibular fractures sustained during sports over 10 years. The data analyzed were age, sex, occupation, mechanism of injury, site, concomitant injuries, and monthly/yearly distribution of patients, treatment and complications.Results: The prevalence of sports related mandibular fractures over the 10 year period was 72 (7.4%) patients who had 79 (5.7%) different fractures. This prevalence was optimum in the month of July and in the year, 2012. The male to female ratio was 11:1. Their ages ranged from 16-31 years but majority (76.4%) were between 20 to 27 years (P=0.001). The frequency of patients was less in the first five years (43.1%) when compared with the subsequent five years (56.9%) of the ten-year study period (P=0.03). Football related injuries in patients (87.5%, P=0.000) were the most common cause. Concomitant injuries occurred in 23 (32.0%) subjects, and these were mostly cerebral concussion (n=13, 18.1%). The methods of treatment utilized to manage the patients were conservative (n=10, 13.9%) and closed reduction (n=62, 86.1%). Limitation of mouth opening was complication in 3 (4.2%) patients treated by inter-maxillary fixation and these were corrected during follow-up.Conclusion: Although the treatment outcome was good, this study has shown an increasing trend in the occurrence of mandibular fractures