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The consequences of orofacial trauma resulting from violence: a study in Porto
Author(s) -
Caldas Inês Morais,
Magalhães Teresa,
Afonso Américo,
Matos Eduarda
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
dental traumatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.82
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1600-9657
pISSN - 1600-4469
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-9657.2010.00936.x
Subject(s) - medicine , dental trauma , dentistry , embarrassment , oral mucosa , injury prevention , quality of life (healthcare) , poison control , psychology , medical emergency , nursing , social psychology , pathology
– Orofacial injuries resulting from violence are a fairly common event. In Portugal, however, the impact of these injuries remains to be elucidated. This study aims to analyze the injuries and permanent consequences of orofacial trauma (in a three‐dimensional perspective: organic, functional and situational), resulting from violence. To do so, a retrospective analysis of all violence‐related forensic reports performed in the North Branch of the National Institute of Legal Medicine, during 2007, was carried out ( n = 513). It was found that most victims were men with a mean age of 35.4 (SD = 15.1). Most aggressions were due to punches and/or kicks. The most frequent orofacial injuries were lip injuries (57.7%), followed by extra‐oral soft tissue injuries (35.9%), gingival and oral mucosa injuries (29.2%), and teeth and/or periodontal injuries (17.5%). The most frequent long‐term consequences concerned the teeth and periodontal area (14.0%), followed by the lip area (7.4%), and gingival and oral mucosa tissues (3.9%). In terms of the effect on functions and life situations, it was found that chewing and embarrassment in social life events were the most prevalent (43.6% and 83.6%, respectively). These results showed that orofacial trauma from violence‐related events can damage a person’s quality of life, especially those concerning the teeth area, as a result of their implications in normal function and in life situations.