[Radiodiagnosis of Le Fort type fractures]

Le Fort's fractures of maxillary bones are referred to grave injuries that require an accurate and urgent diagnosis. A total of 70 patients with different variants of such fractures were examined. The x-ray examination included polypositional roentgenography, linear tomography and panoramic sonography with the Sonarc apparatus. The injuries with all signs of Le Fort's fractures of two and even three types predominated, asymmetric injuries were rather frequent. Panoramic sonography with the patient in a modified position helped specify the volume and extension of the injury to the facial bones, but it should be supplemented with linear tomography to detect the injuries of the pterygoid processes of the major bone of the anterior and posterior walls of the maxillary sinuses, of the frontonasal channel opening, of the posterior wall of the frontal sinuses and the anterior cranial fossa structures, the detection of injuries of the pterygoid processes being the key sign in the differential diagnosis of Le Fort fractures.