OPEN REDUCTION OF SUBCONDYLAR FRACTURES - A STUDY OF FUNCTIONAL REHABILITATION

Open reduction of dislocated subcondylar fractures was carried out in 19 adult patients between 1990 and 1992. A comparison of the results b etween two groups of patients was made 1 year after trauma. The refere nce group consisted of patients with the same type of fracture but tre ated with only intermaxillary fixation (IMF) and moderate jaw exercise s after release of IMF, Dysfunction of the masticatory system was noti ced in only a few cases of either group. Open reduction with plate ost eosynthesis made it possible to avoid IMF in 12 of 19 patients. The re sults in the two groups did not differ significantly from a functional point of view. There are, however, specific indications for open redu ction based on the degree of dislocation and concomitant subjective sy mptoms.