Abstract
We performed a clinical study on the actual situation and treatment of maxillofacial fractures in pediatric patients. The 6 cases were treated at Asahikawa Hospital of the Japanese Red Cross during the 10 years from April 2007 to March 2017. The fracture sites of all 6 cases were the mandible and there were no cases of multiple injury. Four of them needed surgical repositioning and fixation with a titanium mini-plate or stainless steel wire because of remarkable displaced fracture of the mandible; the other cases were followed up without any surgical treatment. In principle, non-invasive treatment is recommended because the tooth germ or unerupted teeth will be not damaged. In the present cases, it is thought that the surgical repositioning and fixation for the pediatric patients enabled early training of mouth-opening and early recovery of oral function. None of the cases suffered complications such as damage to tooth germ or osteomyelitis of the jaw.
In conclusion，surgical repositioning and fixation with a titanium mini-plate or stainless steel wire is useful for severe maxillofacial fractures in pediatric patients. Although there are no definite reports on the timing of removing a titanium mini-plate or stainless steel wire, in the present cases we confirmed clear bone union with CT scan at 4 months after the surgical operation, so we consider that this is a suitable timing for removing the mini-plate or wire.
