Gunshot injury to the face in civilian violence is a "benign" condition as long as the Patient's airway is kept patent and hemorrhage is controlled. Early operative intervention for repair of the soft and skeletal facial structures leads to satisfactory results. Mortality directly related to the facial trauma is uncommon.

This study measured the temperature in and around mandibular fractures in 20 anaesthetized patients. A fine calibrated thermocouple attached to a digital thermometer was used to measure temperature at the bone surface margin of a mandibular fracture and 5 and 10 mm from the fracture; within the fracture against the bone at 5, 7 and 10 mm depths and at the base of 7 mm deep biopsy cavities 5 and 10 mm distant from the fracture line immediately after biopsy, then 1 and 2 min later. On the surface the temperature was approximately 1 degrees C warmer than at the 5 and 10 mm sites distant from the fracture. Temperature reduced at the 1 and 2 min readings after the biopsy cavity cutting. This study confirmed that the surface temperature is lower than internal bone temperatures.

No abstract