In the present case of a 9-year-old girl with prominent swelling in the mental and facial regions after trauma, repeated magnetic resonance (MR) examinations were performed to evaluate areas of incision, because the swelling became worse and more prominent despite intravenous antibiotic treatment. However, there was no evidence of respiratory tract impingement or deformation, including obliteration, on MR imaging. Therefore, surgical treatment involving an incision because of facial region swelling was cancelled, and the intravenous antibiotic therapy was continued. To prevent misdiagnosis and over-treatment of young children with inflammation of the oral and maxillofacial regions, dentists, including pediatric dentists, should be aware of the clinical usefulness of MR examinations. In particular, MR examinations are non-invasive for young children, because there is no X-ray exposure, and they can be used repetitively. At the same time, the present case demonstrated that it is very difficult to understand and predict changes in the inflammation process associated with children's facial trauma.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.