MAXILLOFACIAL FRACTURES - A STUDY OF RECURRENT VICTIMS

A study of 760 patients treated for maxillofacial fractures over a 2 y ear period revealed 3 per cent of them to have had one or more previou s fractures in the maxillofacial region. This group of patients are ne arly all victims of assault but are indistinguishable from a control g roup of patients with maxillofacial injuries on the grounds of age, se x, anatomical type of injury or socioeconomic status. They are however more likely to have been drinking alcohol at the time of their injury than the control group. We advocate targeting of this sub-group of pa tients with maxillofacial fractures for appropriate counselling.