Surgical Fixation Outperformed Closed Reduction in Condylar Fracture Review

Edited by Dentaltown staff

Patients whose mandibular condylar fractures were treated with plate or screw fixation showed greater skeletal stability and lower temporomandibular joint dysfunction scores than patients treated by closed reduction, according to a retrospective study published July 28 in Clinical Oral Investigations.

The study compared 60 patients across three treatment groups: plate fixation, screw fixation, and closed reduction.

Investigators evaluated each patient with cone beam computed tomography at three time intervals, measuring mandibular dimensions and facial symmetry indices that included tragion-pogonion distance and ramus length, along with temporomandibular joint dysfunction scores.

The closed reduction group had significantly higher dysfunction scores than the two surgical fixation groups. Investigators tracked facial soft tissue measurements alongside the skeletal and joint findings.

The authors concluded that the management of condylar fractures significantly influences mandibular dimensions and facial symmetry, particularly following closed reduction, and that surgical fixation provides greater skeletal stability and improved functional outcomes.

Taqee Aldeen Qaid, Abdo Ahmed Saleh Mohamed, and colleagues conducted the study, with Ping Zhou as senior author. The work was supported by provincial research funding in Gansu, China, and the authors declared no competing interests.

Because the design was retrospective and treatment was not randomized, injury severity, fracture anatomy, surgeon preference, and patient characteristics could have influenced both the treatment selected and the outcome. The abstract does not report how many patients fell into each of the three groups.

Sources:
Clinical Oral Investigations, “The impact of condylar fracture management on facial soft tissue changes and TMJ function: a 3D CBCT evaluation of open vs. closed reduction,” published online July 28, 2026: link.springer.com/10.1007/s00784-026-07048-7
DOI: doi.org/10.1007/s00784-026-07048-7