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A prospective study on elderly patients with facial fractures in a developing country
Stephen Joseph Royan1, Abdul Latif Hamid, Ferdinand Jesudian Kovilpillai
1Department of Oral Surgery, Melaka Hospital, Melaka, Malaysia. sjroyan@hotmail.com
Background:
This paper describes the incidence, aetiology, treatment and complications of facial fractures seen among the elderly in a developing country.
Methods:
A prospective study evaluated 85 patients over 60 years of age who were diagnosed with facial fractures over a period of 12 months in 23 public hospitals nationwide.
Results:
The elderly accounted for 4.5% of the total number of patients seen with facial fractures during the study period. Elderly men outnumbered women by a ratio of 4.31:1. Of the elderly patients, 35.3% had at least one medical condition, the commonest of which was hypertension. Road traffic accidents were the main cause of injury. The fractures were treated in only 26.2% of cases. Complications were uncommon.
Conclusions:
With a low incidence, and conservative treatment often being practised, the healthcare burden of treating facial fractures among the elderly in Malaysia is at present still low.
