Probability assessment of facial nerve injury in children and adolescents during the elective maxillofacial surgery

Abstract

Relevance. Various factors can cause facial neuropathy. Iatrogenic facial nerve injury in childhood and adolescence is a complicated medical, psychological and legal problem. Risk assessment of the facial nerve injury during the elective maxillofacial surgeries is required depending on the localization of the procedure. The statistical assessment is very important for the evaluation of the possible iatrogenic facial neuropathy in children and adolescents during the elective maxillofacial surgeries.Materials and methods. 715 medical records for 2017 from the Department of Pediatric Maxillofacial Surgery of the MSUMD Clinical Center for Maxillofacial, Reconstructive and Plastic Surgery were analyzed.Results. There was a risk of injury to the trunk or branches of the facial nerve during surgery in 121 cases (16,9%) for the technical complexity of the surgical approach and the pathology location.Conclusions. There is a high risk of the facial nerve injury during the elective maxillofacial surgery in children and adolescents due to the complex anatomy of the area. Intraoperative neuromonitoring is recommended to prevent iatrogenic neuropathy of the facial nerve.