Mandible fracture caused by motorcycle accident: case report

Introduction: Traffic accidents have a high level of occurancy in trauma reports in the state of Bahia, in the northeastern area of Brazil. According to official reports, 68% of these patients are motorcyclists and the chances of suffering a head injury are drastically improved when helmets are not being used. Aim: This article aims to report a mandible fracture case caused by a motorcycle accident with a 3 month follow up. Case Report: Man at the age of 44, attended the Clinic of Maxilofacial Surgery at Hospital do Oeste in Barreiras/Bahia, 15 days after suffering a head trauma caused by a motorcycle accident. Gathering data from the clinical and imaging findings, it was possible to conclude that he suffered fractures in the right mandibular parassinphysis and left mandibular body. Surgical treatment under general anesthesia was scheduled one week after the first examination, and a 3 month follow up was conducted. Conclusion: Head injuries are very common in motorcycle accidents when helmet safety instructions are not followed. In these situations, when the mandible is affected, an open surgical treatment, at an opportune time, through intraoral access promotes good resolution when combined with good adherence to postoperative follow up by the patient, as seen in the present study.