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01.07.19
N Korduke, T Singh.
NZ Medical Journal, July 2019
AIM: To determine the number of patients that received plain facial view radiographs as well as computed tomography (CT) scans in diagnosing their midface fractures.
CONCLUSIONS: 40.5% of patients with single-system facial trauma received both plain radiographs as well as CT imaging. Additionally, 82.1% of all patients who had plain radiographs went on to have a further facial CT. Furthermore, 70% of these patients were surgically managed, inferring that this population may have benefitted from receiving a CT scan from the outset. This is not in line with the standard for pre-operative imaging of midface fractures in the literature, and a clinical pathway could be implemented across the Midland district health boards to guide the clinician in requesting appropriate pre-operative imaging of these fractures. This will aim to avoid delays in diagnosis, reduce radiation burden and create improved surgical planning and outcomes for our patients, while also enhancing healthcare resource allocation.
