Labial lesions by human bite

Abstract

Introduction: A bite from another human is an unusual cause of maxillo-facial traumatology. Our objective was to describe the epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of labial lesions caused by this kind of bite. Patients and methods: A descriptive prospective study was carried out at the University hospitals of Yalgado OUEDRAOGO and Blaise COMPAORE in Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso between June 2012 and May 2017. Results: We collected a sample of 28 patients with an average age of 32.5 years. The sex ratio was about 0.3. All the bites had been inflicted by women. The victims generally came from an underprivileged socioprofessional background. The bite had occurred during a brawl in 26 patients (92.9% cases) and in some context of aggression among 2 patients. The lesions were located on the lower lip among 21 patients, the upper lip among 4 patients, and along the commissure among 3 patients and resulted in a loss of tissue among 23 patients (82.1%). The treatment was surgical in nature, using trimming and labialization with satisfactory results in all cases. Conclusion: The circumstances surrounding the bites are not always clear and the lesions are almost always serious and require delicate treatment.