Page 87 - Open versus closed Mandibular condyle fractures
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Open treatment of condylar fractures: extraoral approaches
Definitions
Clear definitions were essential for preventing further disagreements. In defining an extraoral approach, a discrimination between skin incision and subcutaneous dissection was made. Three main skin incisions/approaches were distinguished: pre-auricular, retromandibular, and submandibular (Figure 1). In general, the pre-auricular approach uses an incision to approach the condylar fracture by incising 3 to 4 cm from the inferior border of the tragus towards the external auditory canal, along the skin crease of the anterior part of the external ear. The retromandibular approach approaches the condylar fracture by dissecting the skin and subcutaneous tissue vertically to the mandibular angle, using a 3-cm incision line 5 mm inferior to the auricular lobe.
The submandibular approach is conducted by performing an incision at a site 2 to 3 cm inferior to the inferior mandibular border, parallel to the inferior mandibular border, or along the skin crease.26
Subcutaneous dissections were divided into transparotid and non transparotid (i.e., transmasseteric and anteroparotid/posteroparotid) (Figure 2).
Figure 1.
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