Abstract
Introduction: Nasal fractures are the most common facial injuries. The absence of representative studies on nasal trauma in Slovakia does not allow the creation of uniform treatment procedures.
Diagnosis and treatment differ on individual workplaces. The aim of this study is to present the epidemiological indicators of nasal fractures, to find out the most common cause of the injury, accompanying traumas and to propose the most appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic procedure.
Methods: In our retrospective study we analysed patients with nasal trauma, who were diagnosed at our clinic between October 1, 2017 and September 30, 2022. Clinical data were obtained from the hospital information system Stapro MEDEA. We evaluated gender, age, cause of trauma, risk factors, accompanying injuries, diagnosis and treatment procedure.
Results: 121 patients were included in the study, the average age was 46.9 years. Men had nose injuries twice as often as women. The most frequent risk factor was alcoholic intoxication (19.8 %). The most often mechanism of the trauma were fall (45.5 %) and stranger assault (25.6 %). The most common accompanying symptoms were epistaxis (74.4 %), nasal laceration (44.6 %) and periorbital hematoma (41.3 %). Computer tomography was indicated in 64.5 % of patients, and in all cases ordered by a traumatologist. Anterior nasal tamponade (53.7 %) and closed reposition (52.1 %) were the most often chosen treatment methods.
Conclusion: The treatment of nasal fracture belongs to the hands of an ENT specialist. Based on the circumstances of the trauma and associated injuries, the doctor considers the necessity of additional imaging examinations. The most common risk factor is alcoholic intoxication and almost every fracture is accompanied by epistaxis. After an objective evaluation, the physician chooses a suitable treatment procedure - observation or closed reposition under local or general anesthesia (Fig. 3, Ref. 20). Text in PDF www.lekarsky.herba.sk.
KEY WORDS: nasal trauma, epidemiology, treatment.
Lek Obz 2024, 73 (6): 188-191
Estera BEHÁŇOVÁ, Heiko PEDAN, Viera JÁNOŠOVÁ, Andrej HAJTMAN, Vladimír ČALKOVSKÝ
Klinika otorinolaryngológie a chirurgie hlavy a krku Jesseniovej lekárskej fakulty Univerzity Komenského a Univerzitnej nemocnice Martin, prednosta kliniky doc. MUDr. V. Čalkovský, PhD.
