Following a car crash in which her face hit the steering wheel, a 37-year-old woman presents to the emergency department with facial deformity. Facial x-rays showed a transverse fracture through the articulation of the maxillary and nasal bones with the frontal bone. The fracture also passed below the zygomatic bone. What is the diagnosis?
The bones injured describe a Le Fort II fracture, (Figure below) occasionally associated with a palatal split, where the right and left maxillary are completely separated at the midline or the hard palate. Gently rocking the maxillary arch causes the maxilla and nasofrontal areas to move in concert. If there is a Le Fort III fracture, the entire face is detached from the cranial base.Classic Le Fort fracture patterns.
Sphenoid wing fracture
LeFort II fracture
Petrous temporal fracture
Palatal split
Trauma