Intraorbital foreign bodies in maxillofacial traumas

Abstract

Objective: To assess the existence of intraorbital foreign bodies and its frequency and association with fracture by using computerized tomography (CT) in patients with maxillofacial or orbital injuries.
Methods: Maxillofacial or orbita evaluations and hospital charts of patients, who were admitted to our hospital due to maxillofacial or orbital injuries and who underwent CT using the axial examination and reformatted coronal views with spiral scanning and 3 mm slice width by using the General Electric HiSpeed Nx/i dual CT device in our in emergency CT unit were retrospectively evaluated.
Results: During the 15 month study period, 38 (9.0%) out of the total of 420 study patients had intraorbital foreign bodies (IOFB). Among the 76 IOFBs confirmed, 72 (94.7%) were metallic or non-metallic inorganic, and 4 were bone fragments accepted as organic foreign bodies. Of all cases, 28 (73.7%) had no fracture.
Conclusions: It is essential that the presence and locations of IOFBs should be determined correctly for their successful surgical extractions. CT imaging is the preferential method for determining of presence and locations of foreign bodies. In the low energy traumas, IOFBs without fractures may be seen frequently and therefore, emergency department practitioners should be on alert about this possibility.