Malar Relocation with Reverse-L Osteotomy and Autogenous Bone Graft

Abstract

The zygomaticomaxillary complex (ZMC) functions as a buttress for the face and is the cornerstone to a person's aesthetic appearance, by both setting the midfacial width and providing prominence to the cheek. Malar deficiency is often acquired by blunt injury incurred in a traumatic accident, resulting in ZMC fracture. A 48-year-old male patient presented a right ZMC fracture after contusion injury by a baseball. He only received conservative management and later he suffered discomfort during mouth opening at the moment of mastication, due to trismus involving the temporomandibular joint. In the current case, we describe a surgical technique, by which the malar body is shifted anteriorly and laterally after combined oblique-vertical osteotomy. The technique presented, eventually restored the former aesthetic position of the malar complex and symmetry, and, moreover, improved mastication function.