Bite injuries: pathophysiology, forensic analysis, and management

Bites are serious injuries that constitute 1 percent of all emergency-department visits in the United States of America. Human bite injuries may lead to loss of function, infection, and gross disfigurement, and often are associated with interpersonal and sexual violence, and child abuse. Issues with infection from oral contaminants, tissue damage, and difficult surgical reconstruction make the management of human bite injuries a challenge. The unique nature of teeth and the bite marks they produce are invaluable in forensic pathology. A systematic and detailed evaluation of bite injuries should be performed by a forensic odontologist in order to provide the necessary information for forensic purposes. Management of human bite injuries includes wound debridement, surgery to repair or replace damaged tissue, and long-term antibiotic therapy.