TRANSZYGOMATIC CORONOIDECTOMY THROUGH AN EXTENDED CORONAL INCISION FOR TREATMENT OF TRISMUS DUE TO AN OSTEOCHONDROMA OF THE CORONOID PROCESS OF THE MANDIBLE

Osteochondroma is the most common benign tumor of the skeletal system. In the craniofacial skeleton, however, osteochondroma is uncommon. Ev en more rare is osteochondroma of the coronoid process. A review of th e literature reveals only 31 reported cases of osteochondroma of the c oronoid process of the mandible. The preponderance of patients were yo ung men (67.7%) and most presented with a facial deformity. As a benig n tumor, the problems with surgical treatment have dealt with the inac cessibility of the lesion and hence the surgical approach of choice. T he previous surgical approaches have either been intraoral, external, or a combination of both. We present a transzygomatic approach via a c oronal incision that gives excellent access and a good cosmetic result , and protects the facial nerve from damage.