30-Day Post-Operative Complications of Facial Fracture Repairs: A United States Database Study

• Published in: Craniomaxillofacial trauma & reconstruction Vol. 16; no. 3; pp. 239 - 244
• Main Authors: Rich, Matthew D., Jungbauer, W. Nicholas, Schubert, Warren
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.09.2023
• Subjects: Original; facial fractures; post-operative outcomes; national surgical quality improvement program
• DOI: 10.1177/19433875221128535
• ISSN: 1943-3875

Study Design Cross-sectional database analysis. Objective To define post-operative complication rates in facial fracture repair and to assess this data for patient characteristics which may be associated with post-operative complications. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP) database between January 1, 2015, and December 31, 2019. All patients included in this study sample must have (a) been ≥18 years old and (b) underwent surgical repair of a facial fracture during the study period by a plastic surgeon or otolaryngologist. Adverse outcomes at 30 days were characterized into four groups: superficial surgical site infection (SSI), deep SSI, organ space infection, and wound disruption. Results In total, 2481 patients met the primary outcome of facial fracture. Among the four fracture types assessed, 1090 fractures (43.9%) were mandibular, 721 were zygomatic (29.1%), 638 were orbital (25.7%), and 32 (1.3%) were Lefort. Of the entire cohort, 25 patients (1.01%) experienced a superficial SSI, 14 patients (.56%) presented with a deep SSI, 25 fractures (1.01%) returned with an organ space infection, and 23 patients (.93%) experienced some type of wound disruption. Smokers had a significantly higher risk of superficial SSIs (P < .05) and organ space infections (P < .05). Conclusions The majority of facial fracture patients do not experience post-operative complications. However, smokers and patients with diabetes mellitus were shown to be at an elevated risk of developing complications. Future research should further investigate this relationship and focus on developing interventions to improve post-operative outcomes.