Correlation Between Soft Tissue Injury and the Type of Nasal Fracture Based on Stranc–Robertson Classification

Abstract

Nasal fractures are the most common facial bone fractures, and soft tissue injuries are frequently accompanied. This study intends to make a deep analysis on the relationship between the 2. Patients diagnosed with nasal fracture between 2015 and 2017 were included. Patients younger than 17 years and those with previous facial fractures or aesthetic surgeries were excluded. Nasal fractures were classified according to the Stranc–Robertson (S–R) classification, and the severity of soft tissue injury was evaluated by length and depth. The authors compared the frequency of soft tissue injury between frontal and lateral groups. Second, the authors investigated whether the incidence of soft tissue injuries increases as a function of the increase in the S–R classification both in frontal and lateral group (from plane I to III). The authors also analyzed the difference in severity of soft tissue injuries in each group. Pearson chi-square analysis, linear by linear and Jonckheere–Terpstra tests were used for statistical analysis. Of 621 patients, 296 were frontal plane and 325 were lateral plane. The frontal group had a higher incidence of soft tissue injury than the lateral group (P = 0.004). The incidence of soft tissue injury and severity by depth increased as a function of the increase in the S–R classification only in the frontal group (P = 0.046, 0.019). In nasal fractures, frontal impact is more associated with frequency and severity of soft tissue injury than lateral impact. This seems to be related to the anatomical characteristics of nasal area and mechanism of injuries in each group.