Pathological (late) fractures of the mandibular angle after lower third molar removal: a case series

INTRODUCTION: Pathological (late) fracture of the mandibular angle after third molar surgery is very rare (0.005% of third molar removals). There are 94 cases reported in the literature; cases associated with osseous pathologies such as osteomyelitis or any local and systemic diseases that may compromise mandibular bone strength have not been included. We describe three new cases of pathological (late) fracture of the mandibular angle after third molar surgery. CASE PRESENTATIONS: The first patient was a 27-year-old Caucasian man who had undergone surgical removal of a 3.8, mesioangular variety, class II-C third molar 20 days before admission to our clinic. The fracture of his left mandibular angle, complete and composed, occurred during chewing. The second patient was a 32-year-old Caucasian man. He had undergone surgical removal of a 3.8, mesioangular variety, class II-B third molar 22 days before his admission. The fracture, which occurred during mastication, was studied by computed tomography that showed reparative tissue in the fracture site. The third patient was a 36-year-old Caucasian man who had undergone surgical removal of a 3.8, vertical variety, class II-C third molar 25 days before the observation. In this case the fracture of his mandibular angle was oblique (unfavorable), complete and composed. The fracture had occurred during chewing. We studied the fracture by optical projection tomography and computed tomography. All of the surgical removals of the 3.8 third molars, performed by the patients’ dentists who had more than 10 years of experience, were difficult. We treated the fractures with open surgical reduction, internal fixation by titanium miniplates and intermaxillary elastic fixation removed after 6 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: The literature indicates that the risk of pathological (late) fracture of the mandibular angle after third molar surgery for total inclusions (class II-III, type C) is twice that of partial inclusions due to the necessity of ostectomies more generous than those for partial inclusions. Other important factors are the anatomy of the teeth and the features of the teeth roots. These fractures predominantly occur in patients who are older than 25 years. The highest incidence (67.8% of cases) is found in the second and third week postsurgery. We emphasize that before the third molar surgery it is extremely important to always provide adequate instructions to the patient in order to avoid early masticatory loads and prevent this rare event.