Role of thermography in the assessment of infraorbital nerve injury after malar fractures

We studied 45 patients with malar fractures who had some degree of infraorb ital nerve deficit. Thermographic facial images failed to show any substant ial changes in the temperature profiles of the affected and the normal cont rol sides in relation to recovery of their facial sensation. Although some patients who had thermography on the day of injury showed significant tempe rature differences between the affected and the normal sides, these differe nces were probably the result of the acute inflammatory changes caused by t he injury. We suggest that infrared thermography has little place in the as sessment of infraorbital nerve deficits. (C) 2000 The British Association o f Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons.