Comminuted zygoma fracture reduction and relief of infraorbital nerve compression

Facial numbness due to nerve entrapment in fracture fragments

This young man fell down a flight of stairs and ended up with pain and swelling on the left side of his face. He was experiencing numbness in the infraorbital region for the last three months. He came to our hospital to address this. Dr SM Balaji, oral and maxillofacial surgeon, examined the patient. Then he ordered a 3-D axial CT scan for the patient. It revealed the infraorbital numbness was due to nerve entrapment in the fracture. Treatment plan was then explained to the patient. He was in complete agreement with the proposed treatment plan.

Surgical correction with release of entrapped nerve

The patient underwent uneventful induction of general anesthesia. A left maxillary vestibular incision was first made to visualize the fracture site. This revealed the comminuted zygomatic fracture. There was a fracture fragment that was rotated in the medial direction. This was first elevated and fixed with plates and screws. The entrapped infraorbital nerve was then released from the fracture. This resulted in perfect alignment of the various segments of the fracture. The maxillary vestibular incision was then closed with sutures.

The patient expressed his gratitude before discharge from the hospital.

Surgery Video