Choi JH, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2022 May;37(22):e181. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2022.37.e181

Mandibular fractures are one of the most common types of facial fractures, the treatment of which can be delayed due to the severity of the trauma resulting in an increase of complications; thus, early evaluation of trauma severity at the time of visit is important. In South Korea, trauma patients are triaged and intensively treated in designated regional trauma centers. This study aimed to analyze the relationship between trauma severity and mandibular fracture patterns. A medical records review was performed on patients who visited the regional trauma center at our hospital for mandibular fracture between 2009 and 2018. Epidemiologic data and mandibular fracture patterns were analyzed and compared with the conventional facial injury severity scale (FISS). Among 73 patients, 51 were classified as non-severe trauma patients and 22 as severe trauma patients. A higher trauma severity was associated with older age (odds ratio [OR], 1.164; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.057–1.404) and lower risk was associated with fractures located in the angle (OR, 0.001; 95% CI, 0–0.022), condylar process (OR, 0.001; 95% CI, 0–0.28), and coronoid process (OR, 0.004; 95% CI, 0–0.985). The risk was lower when the injury mechanism was a pedestrian traffic accident (OR, 0.004; 95% CI, 0–0.417) or fall (OR, 0.004; 95% CI, 0–0.663) compared with an in-car traffic accident. Higher FISS (OR, 1.503; 95% CI, 1.155–2.049) was associated with a higher trauma severity. The proposed model was found to predict the trauma severity better than the model using FISS (p< 0.001). Age, location of mandibular fractures, and injury mechanism showed significant relationships with the trauma severity. Epidemiologic data and patterns of mandibular fractures could predict the trauma severity better than FISS.

Rationale: Apocrine carcinoma is a rare malignant sweat gland tumor that has been reported in approximately 200 cases. This tumor usually occurs in the axilla, but in rare cases, it can also develop in the scalp. In the present work, we report 2 cases of cutaneous apocrine carcinoma of the scalp. Patient concerns: Two men visited our outpatient clinic with recurrence of tumor after undergoing surgery for scalp tumor at another hospital. Diagnoses: Brain magnetic resonance imaging of a 56-year old man showed the presence of a 5.0 × 4.5 × 4.4 cm scalp mass in the right parietal region, invading the skull and dura mater and a 2.2 × 2.0 × 0.7 cm bony mass without any skin lesions right next to the scalp mass. Neck magnetic resonance imaging of a 76-year-old man revealed the presence of a well-defined oval mass in the subcutaneous layer of the left occipital scalp and 2 enlarged lymph nodes in the left neck. Definite diagnoses were made postoperatively. The patients were diagnosed with cutaneous apocrine carcinoma. The diagnosis was confirmed through histopathological and immunohistochemical staining tests. Interventions: The tumors were removed with a wide safety margin and reconstructive surgery was performed. Outcomes: Additional radiotherapy or chemotherapy was performed. Follow-up more than 6 months revealed no recurrence or metastasis. Lessons: If accurate diagnosis and treatment had taken place at the initial stages of the primary cutaneous apocrine carcinoma, it would have been possible to prevent recurrence and intracranial invasion. As recurrent primary cutaneous apocrine carcinoma can become aggressive and difficult to treat, even a small mass on the scalp must be evaluated carefully and treated properly.

Posttraumatic pseudoaneurysm of the face is caused by blunt, penetrating, or surgical trauma. Although its incidence is low, pseudoaneurysm rupture can cause a life-threatening, massive hemorrhage. A 48-year-old man visited our emergency center due to a fall-down accident. Three-dimensional computed tomography (CT) showed a comminuted zygomaticomaxillary complex fracture of the left face. After open reduction and internal fixation, the surgical wound healed without any complications. However, the patient was readmitted 10 days after surgery due to pus-like discharge from the wound. Contrast-enhanced CT to find the abscess unexpectedly revealed a pseudoaneurysm in the left retromaxillary area. Massive oral bleeding occurred on the night of re-hospitalization and emergency surgery was done. The bleeding site was identified as a pseudo-aneurysmal rupture of the posterior superior alveolar artery in the retromaxillary area. Hemostasis was achieved by packing Vaseline gauze in the maxillary sinus using an endoscope. Delayed rupture and massive bleeding of posttraumatic retromaxillary pseudoaneurysm after a zygomaticomaxillary fracture is a low-probability, but high-impact event. Therefore, additional contrast-enhanced CT should be considered to evaluate the possibility of a posttraumatic pseudoaneurysm in cases of severe comminuted zygomaticomaxillary fracture.

Background: Orbital fractures are the most common pediatric facial fractures. Treatment is conservative due to the anatomical differences that make children more resilient to severe displacement or orbital volume change than adults. Although rarely, extensive fractures may result in enophthalmos, causing cosmetic problems. We aimed to establish criteria for extensive fractures that may result in enophthalmos. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the charts of patients aged 0-15 years diagnosed with orbital fractures in our hospital from January 2010 to February 2019. Computed tomography images were used to classify the fractures into linear, trapdoor, and open-door types, and to estimate the defect size. Data on enophthalmos severity (Hertel exophthalmometry results) and fracture pattern and size at the time of injury were obtained from patients who did not undergo surgery during the follow-up and were used to identify the surgical indications for pediatric orbital fractures. Results: A total of 305 pediatric patients with pure orbital fractures were included-257 males (84.3%), 48 females (15.7%); mean age, 12.01 ± 2.99 years. The defect size (p = 0.002) and fracture type (p = 0.017) were identified as the variables affecting the enophthalmometric difference between the eyes of non-operated patients. In the linear regression analysis, the variable affecting the fracture size was open-door type fracture (p < 0.001). Pearson's correlation analysis demonstrated a positive correlation between the enophthalmometric difference and the bony defect size (p = 0.003). Using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis, a cutoff value of 1.81 cm 2 was obtained (sensitivity, 0.543; specificity, 0.724; p = 0.002). Conclusion: The incidence of enophthalmos in pediatric pure orbital fractures was found to increase with fracture size, with an even higher incidence when open-door type fracture was a cofactor. In clinical settings, pediatric orbital fractures larger than 1.81 cm 2 may be considered as extensive fractures that can result in enophthalmos and consequent cosmetic problems.

Mucinous cystadenoma, one of the subtypes of cystadenomas, is a rare benign salivary gland tumor. Most of the cases reported tumors presenting as asymptomatic, slow growing, single masses, primarily occurring in the parotid glands, buccal mucosa, and hard palate. This report describes a case of multiple mucinous cystadenomas that presented as subcutaneous swellings in both cheeks, which were mistaken for a benign subcutaneous tumor. A complete surgical excision was performed through an intraoral incision. There were no recurrences or complications. A diagnosis of mucinous cystadenoma was made by histopathological examination. Mucinous cystadenomas are differentiated from other salivary gland tumors based on the pathological findings. A malignant transformation is also possible. Preoperative imaging cannot identify mucinous cystadenomas because of their small size and atypical features, and needle biopsy has its limitations in such salivary gland tumors. Therefore, accurate diagnosis and treatment through surgical excision become important.