Prevalence of mandibular fracture in patients visiting a tertiary dental care hospital in North India

BACKGROUND: Injuries of the maxillofacial complex represent one of the most important health problems worldwide. At present, in developing India, due to poor traffic sense, maxillofacial trauma and fractures are most epidemiologic diseases. Mandible is the largest and strongest facial bone and it is the second most commonly fractured bone. Mandibular fractures can involve only one site or can often involve multiple anatomic sites simultaneously. AIMS: The present study is aimed to know the age- and sex-related prevalence of parasymphyseal fracture, fracture of angle, condylar fracture, symphyseal fracture, and coronoid fracture of mandible in North Indian population. It also evaluates the correlation of prevalence of parasymphyseal fracture, angle of mandible, condylar fracture of mandible, symphyseal fracture of mandible, and coronoid fracture of mandible. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients fulfilling the selection criteria and having mandible fracture were selected for the study. The data about mandibular fracture was collected by means of a structured questionnaire including age, sex, and anatomic site of fracture. Qualitative variables were compared using Chi-square test/Fisher's exact test as appropriate. RESULTS: The study population consists of 1015 individuals aged between 7 and 68 years with the mean age of 33.49 ± 11.79 years. The most common anatomic site for mandibular fracture was parasymphyseal region (40.3%) followed by angle (28.8%), condyle (27.6%), and symphysis (12.5%) of mandible. The coronoid process of mandible (44, 4.3%) was least involved in mandibular fracture. Males (30.8%) are more predilected for condylar fracture than females (15.7%). The mandibular symphyseal fracture is more common in male (14.9%) than female (3.7%). CONCLUSION: Mandibular fractures occur in people of all ages and races, in a wide range of social settings. Their causes often reflect shifts in trauma patterns over time. The present assessments of mandibular fracture will be valuable to government agencies and health-care professionals involved in planning future programs of prevention and treatment.