The Fate of Teeth Transfixed by Osteosynthesis Screws
- 1 April 1996
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health) in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
- Vol. 97 (4), 726-729
- https://doi.org/10.1097/00006534-199604000-00006
Abstract
Rigid internal fixation with plates and screws for osteosynthesis of facial fractures and osteotomies in the cranio-maxill of acial skeleton is often undertaken in situations in which the exact position of the underlying tooth roots cannot be determined. Therefore, a screw may be inadvertently placed into a root. There is scant data in the literature addressing the consequences of tooth impingement. This 5-year retrospective study documents the longterm outcome of teeth transfixed by osteosynthesis screws in a series of 387 consecutive facial fractures at a Level I trauma center. The incidence of root impingement per screw was 0.47 percent (13 transfixed teeth per 2340 + screws). Mandibular teeth were more “at risk” than maxillary teeth by a ratio of 10:3. No transfixed teeth became infected or required extraction in this series. In conclusion, inadvertent tooth root impingement by osteosynthesis screws appears to have minimal adverse consequences. (Plast. Reconstr. Surg. 97: 726, 1996.)Keywords
This publication has 6 references indexed in Scilit:
- Use of Rigid Internal Fixation in the Treatment of Mandibular FracturesOral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America, 1990
- Complications in the Treatment of Facial TraumaOral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinics of North America, 1990
- Comparisons in the treatment of facial traumaInternational Journal of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, 1989
- Teeth in the line of fracture: A reviewJournal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 1989
- Results in rigid internal fixation of highly comminuted fractures of the mandibleJournal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 1989
- The Use of Miniplates in Craniomaxillofacial SurgeryPlastic and Reconstructive Surgery, 1987