eMedicine Specialties > Plastic Surgery > Facial Fractures

Facial Trauma, Nasal Fractures: Treatment

Author: Vipul R Dev, MD, Chief Medical Director, Regional Wound Care Center; Chief Executive Officer, California Institute of Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery; Director, HealtheUniverse, Inc
Coauthor(s): Patrick Byrne, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University; Adel R Tawfilis, DDS, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of California at San Diego Medical Center; David W Kim, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Director, Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of California at San Francisco
Contributor Information and Disclosures

Updated: Sep 26, 2008

Treatment

Medical Therapy

Ice packs and head elevation are advised initially after injury. If the reduction is not to be performed immediately, then a period of 3-5 days precedes further evaluation. Fractures that are not displaced do not require treatment. Because as many as 30% of patients have a deviation that was present prior to injury, in many cases, obtaining photographs for review is helpful.

For an illustrated description of treating a nasal fracture, see eMedicine Clinical Procedures article Nasal Fracture Reduction.

Surgical Therapy

The reduction of nasal fractures may be performed using an open or closed technique. Most may be reduced successfully with closed reduction. Indications for open reduction and closed reduction are listed Indications.

Preoperative Details

Proper instrumentation is essential. This includes adequate anesthesia, lighting, suction, and instruments. The sensation to the nose derives from the infratrochlear, infraorbital, supratrochlear, and anterior ethmoidal nerves. The base of the nose at the anterior septum, the nasal root, dorsum, and lateral nasal walls are injected with 1-2% lidocaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine. This field block is more effective than targeted nerve blocks. The nose is packed with 4% cocaine pledgets. This may be preceded by topical decongestion and anesthesia (eg, oxymetazoline, Cetacaine) to aid in more comfortable introduction of the pledgets. The physician must wait an adequate period (approximately 15-20 min) to allow the anesthesia and vasoconstriction to be effective. Careful administration of these techniques allows the closed reduction to be performed painlessly in the clinic.

Intraoperative Details

Closed reduction

Use a Boise elevator or other such instrument (an empty knife handle in a glove with surgical lubricant also suffices if necessary) to reduce the fractured segment(s). Externally measure the distance from the nostril rim to the nasion, and introduce the elevator into the nose to a distance 1 cm less than the distance from the nostril rim to the nasion.

Apply controlled force by elevating in the direction opposite of the fracturing force. This is often in an anterolateral direction. Laterally displaced segments may be reduced externally with direct pressure. Often, these maneuvers also adequately reduce associated displaced septal fractures. If not, then an instrument such as Asch forceps may be introduced with one blade in each nostril or with one in the nostril and one outside the nostril. This is then used to reduce the fractured segment. Take care to not apply too much force with this instrument because mucosal tears and bleeding are easily produced.

The patient may have multiple fractures, and some digital molding may be necessary.

Not all nasal fracture reductions require internal packing or splints. If the septum required reduction, then silastic splints may be placed and sutured into place. Depending on the mobility of the segments and the amount of bleeding, antibiotic-impregnated gauze packing may be placed in each nostril for 1-5 days. Stabilize fracture segments that are mobile to gentle palpation with internal packing. Take care to not overpack the nose, thus displacing reduced fractured segments. Externally, apply a layer of surgical tape followed by a rigid nasal splint. This is left in place for 1 week.

Open reduction

The septum is the key structure that may prevent the reduction of the nasal pyramid. In patients in whom the septal fragments are interlocked, the inability to reduce the septum results in the bony pyramid remaining deviated. In such patients, an open approach is necessary. These procedures are performed in the operating room.

Approach the septum via a hemitransfixion incision. Raise mucoperichondrial flaps. Access the dorsum by bilateral intercartilaginous incisions.

Removal of some of the septum may be necessary to provide adequate reduction. Often, the inferior portion of the septum is displaced off the floor. The reduction of the septum is then stabilized best by an anchoring suture of 5-0 polydioxanone from the caudal septum to the periosteum of the nasal spine. Close mucosal incisions and lacerations and the raised mucoperichondrial flaps after reduction.

Be cautious when elevating the periosteum off the nasal bones because the fractured segments may become unstable, devitalized, or lost. For this reason, a conservative approach to exposure of the bony pyramid is warranted.

Packing and postoperative care are the same as described for closed reduction.

Postoperative Details

Most patients who undergo closed reduction do so in the clinic and may be discharged home following the procedure. Ice packs and head elevation are helpful in the immediate postoperative period.

Follow-up

If intranasal packing is required, it is removed in 1-5 days. The intranasal splint, if used, is removed in 5-7 days. The external nasal splint and tape are removed in 1 week. Encourage the patient to use intranasal saline spray at this point to aid in the removal of blood clots and crusting.

Complications

Early

Epistaxis is common with nasal fractures and may recur with the reduction. Hematoma is always a concern and must be excluded for each patient. Infection is uncommon, although some advocate antibiotic prophylaxis for patients with intranasal packing to prevent toxic shock syndrome. The efficacy of this practice is debatable. CSF rhinorrhea is uncommon but may occur when fractures extend to include the cribriform plate.

Late

Late complications include nasal obstruction, secondary nasal deformity, saddle nose deformity, synechia, and septal perforation.³ Proper initial management significantly decreases the incidence of such long-term complications.⁴

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