Fateme Eslami
Mohammad Zandi
Mohamad Ali Seif Rabiei
Nemat Bigonah
Sima Sharifi

Background: Maxillofacial fractures are frequently complicated with injury to the eye and its adnexa. These injuries may result in loss of vision in one or both eyes or may compromise ocular function. This study aimed to evaluate ocular injuries in the patients with maxillofacial trauma. Methods: Two hundred patients with maxillofacial fractures were examined by maxillofacial surgeons and suspected cases of ocular injuries were referred for ophthalmologic consult. Sixty-three patients were excluded from the study due to death and low Glasgow Coma Score (GCS). Patients’ information including maxillofacial fractures and ocular injuries were recorded in check lists and analyzed with SPSS software version ۱۶.۰. Results: out of ۱۳۷ patients, ۱۰۶ (۷۷.۴%) were males and ۳۱ (۲۲.۶%) were females and their mean age was ۳۴.۱ ± ۱۷.۱. The age group with the highest rate of involvement were ۲۱-۴۰ years (۴۶%). The most common cause of injury was motorcycle accident (۳۲.۱%), car accident (۳۰.۷%), and in the third place was falling down (۱۳.۹%). The incidence of right eye injuries was ۵/۹%. Right eye was also involved more frequently than left eye (۳۸% and ۳۲.۱%, respectively), and in ۴۱ cases (۲۹.۹%) both eyes were involved. The prevalence of minor ocular injury was ۵۲.۶%, moderate injury was ۲۴.۸%, and major injury was ۲۲.۶%. The most common ocular injuries were periorbital ecchymosis (۸۳.۹%) and subconjunctival hemorrhage (۷۲.۲%), and unfortunately ۵ cases (۳.۶%) lost their vision. Conclusions: The significant prevalence of ocular injuries due to maxillofacial trauma certifies the necessity of immediate ophthalmologic examination to prevent permanent vision loss. A multidisciplinary team composed of neurosurgeons, plastic, oral and maxillofacial, ENT and ophthalmic surgeons are suggested to improve management of maxillofacial trauma.