Patients sustaining maxillofacial fractures are at risk of accompanying traumatic intracranial hematomas, which are a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Prompt recognition of the clinical signs, followed by a neurosurgical inspection and diagnosis, is crucial for improving patient survival and recovery. To look for a relationship between the pattern of maxillofacial fractures and the risk of an intracranial hemorrhage, this retrospective study examined the records of 188 patients with maxillofacial fractures treated at the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Kagawa Prefectural Central Hospital, Kagawa, Japan, between January 2005 and June 2008. The patients' age, gender, cause, type, and location of maxillofacial fracture, and the intracranial injuries, were analyzed. Intracranial hemorrhage occurred in 17 patients (9.0%) and included intracerebral (6.4%), subarachnoid (4.8%), subdural (3.7%), and epidural (0.5%) hemorrhages. Central mid-face (LeFort-2/3), cranial vault, and basal skull fractures had much higher risks of an accompanying intracranial hemorrhage. Pan-facial maxillofacial fractures (OR 19.1) and high-energy injuries (OR 50.8) increased the risk of an accompanying intracranial hemorrhage. Nevertheless, traumatic intracranial hemorrhages were seen with one simple fracture of the zygoma, one of the maxilla, two fractures of the mandible, and even two maxillary alveolar fractures. Four patients (23.5%) had to undergo neurosurgery to decompress an intracranial hematoma. High-energy injuries may affect the intracranial vessels, leading to hemorrhage in different intracranial compartments. Therefore, when treating maxillofacial fractures, oral and maxillofacial surgeons and emergency and critical care physicians should always consider the clinical signs of traumatic intracranial hemorrhage, in close consultation with critical care centers and neurosurgeons.
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