[Epidemiologic study of mandible fractures in a public hospital of São Paulo].

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the frequency epidemiological description of mandibular fractures correlating gender, age, etiological factors, anatomic location, and types of fracture's traces.

METHODS

A retrospective survey of the medical history of 883 patients with facial fractures, attended at the Buco-Maxilo-Facial Surgery and Traumatology Service of the Hospital Geral de Vila Penteado in São Paulo (São Paulo - Brazil), in a period of 3 years (from January 2004 to December 2006).

RESULTS

From 883 patients evaluated, 270 presented mandibular fracture (30,5%). The male gender was the most affected (76,7%) in the age of 20 to 29 years (33,0%), the most frequent etiological factor was the car accident (35,2%), the body of the mandible was the most affected anatomic location (47,4%) and the single traces prevailed (76,7%).

CONCLUSION

The majority of the fractures were simple, located in the body of the mandible, and higligted in males, aged from 20 t0 29 years, and caused by car accident.