Evaluation of Mandible Fractures in Patients With Sickle Cell Anemia-A Nationwide Study

  • J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2019 Jul;77(7):1418-1422. doi: 10.1016/j.joms.2018.12.031.
Maryam Akbari  1 ,  Riddhi Patel  2 ,  Vincent Carrao  3 ,  Ward Hagar  4 ,  Elliott Vichinsky  5 ,  Sung-Kiang Chuang  6
Affiliations
  • 1. Oral and Maxillofacial Resident (PGY2), Mount Sinai Health System, New York, NY. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 2. Associate Professor, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH.
  • 3. Program Director, Mount Sinai Health System, New York, NY.
  • 4. Associate Clinical Professor, University California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.
  • 5. Professor, University California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.
  • 6. Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
PMID: 30707980 DOI: 10.1016/j.joms.2018.12.031
Abstract

Purpose: Sickle cell anemia is the most commonly inherited blood disorder in the United States. Despite its prevalence, clinicians know little about the extent of its impact on orofacial manifestations.

Materials and methods: All patients with diagnoses of mandible fracture and sickle cell anemia admitted from 2004 through 2014 were identified using the National Inpatient Sample. Patient demographics, fracture regions, and complications were characterized by descriptive statistics.

Results: Fifty-one of 48,464 patients admitted for mandible fracture had sickle cell anemia. The mean age of the identified patients was 25 years (range, 4 to 58 yr). Of all admitted patients, mandible angle fracture was the most common (19%), followed by fracture of the body of the mandible. Seventy-five percent of cases reviewed were treated with open reduction and internal fixation.

Conclusions: Most mandible fractures in patients with sickle cell anemia were located in the angle of the mandible. Complications were minimal and outcomes were satisfactory. Aseptic necrosis of the jaw was a frequent complication of mandible fracture in patients with sickle cell anemia. These results provide clinicians with a better understanding of the distribution and hospital course of patients with sickle cell anemia and facial fractures.