Midfacial fractures

Abstract

The face has traditionally been divided into upper face, midface, and lower face. Fracture of the craniofacial skeleton can similarly be divided into these three regions. The midface is more complex, secondary to its many and variable components. It involves all entities of the facial skeleton between the upper face and the lower face, including the orbital rims and walls (except the roof), the nasal bones, the maxilla and pterygoids, and the zygoma and its arch. This chapter will deal primarily with maxillary and palatal fractures of the midface. Other chapters in this book will concentrate on nasal, orbital, and zygomatic fractures.