Management of maxillofacial injuries sustained after a bear attack

Abstract

There is a little available literature on injuries sustained due to bear attacks and their management. Bears are agile wild animals and injuries sustained after a bear attack have varying patterns. In general, such cases present to the emergency department with severe maxillofacial injuries with varying patterns, thereby limiting the use of common protocol for the management of such injuries. The aim of this article is to add to the current available literature on bear attacks, a present case of management of maxillofacial injury involving the orbit sustained after a bear attack.

Emergency Airways After Himalayan Black Bear Attacks in Bhutan

“…A case report describing the management of facial wounds after a Himalayan black bear attack in Arunachal Pradesh, a part of India immediately bordering Bhutan, describes injuries similar to those found in our review: facial fractures, loss of an eye, and extensive lacerations to the face and scalp. 10 The patient’s airway was not involved and did not require emergency airway management. A study of fatal Himalayan black bear attacks in Japan found that all 5 patients who died after being attacked died as a consequence of head injuries.…”