Injuries in the cervical craniomandibular complex after whiplash phenomenon

Traffic accidents worldwide are considered a public health problem and traumatic injuries due to the phenomenon of whiplash with clinical manifestations such as neck or head pain and temporomandibular joint pain are considered common.

The aim was to determine the prevalence of lesions in the cervical craniomandibular complex after traffic accidents in Quito, Ecuador.

This was an observational, cross-sectional study with data provided by the Fire Department of the Metropolitan District of Quito Emergency Department (911) for the years 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and the first semester of 2023. Five hospitals with maxillofacial surgery departments had a standard clinical history according to the Diagnostic Criteria for temporomandibular disorders. The treatment of temporomandibular disorders such as cervical pain, muscular palpation tenderness, difficulty opening the mouth, regular headache, joint crackles, and arthralgia was considered.

The results revealed that the muscle palpation tenderness had a considerably high prevalence (71.03%), followed by difficulty opening the mouth (14.33%), and regular headache (25.31%). Among the participants, the highest prevalence of muscle palpation tenderness (32.56%) and regular headache (30.23%) was found in older adults aged 55 years and older.

Injuries to the cranio-cervico-mandibular complex because of traffic accidents found a prevalence of muscle pain (32.5/25%) and headaches (headaches 30/20%) in the entire population studied: children, adolescents, adults and older adults.