Etiology and pattern of maxillofacial fractures among patients who visited Jimma Medical Center Dental Clinic, Jimma, Southwest Ethiopia

The maxillofacial region consists of soft and hard tissues that form the face and extend from the frontal bone superiorly to the mandible inferiorly. Because the face is the most exposed part of the body, it is especially vulnerable to trauma. Trauma to the maxillofacial regions is a major public health problem worldwide. Nearly 5% to 10% of trauma patients have facial fractures. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the etiology and pattern of maxillofacial fractures among patients who visited Jimma Medical Center (JMC) dental clinic, Southwest Ethiopia. Institutional based retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted on 331 patients (279 males and 52 females with a mean age of 26.23 ± 13.51 years) with maxillofacial fractures who visited JMC dental clinic from January 2018 to December 2020. To collect data first charts of the patients were found using their medical record numbers. Then information like socio-demographic characteristics, patterns of fractures, and causes of fractures, was collected using a structured and pretested checklist from the chart. Data was entered into the Epi-data version 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. Descriptive analysis was done and presented by the use of tables, bar graphs and pie chart. The leading cause of fracture was road traffic accidents (45%), followed by assault (33.2%) and accidental fall (11.8%). Head (51.6%) injuries were the most common associated injuries. Surgical site infection (52.2%) was the most common posttreatment complication. The study's findings can be used to guide public health activities, healthcare professional training, and resource allocation in Ethiopia in order to enhance maxillofacial fracture prevention, management, and outcomes.