Surgical or conservative treatment for mandibular condyle fractures

Introduction Maxillofacial fractures are associated with significant morbidity, loss of function and aesthetic sequelae, among others. Within mandibular fractures, mandibular condylar fractures are the most frequent. These can be treated by surgical treatment or conservative treatment (orthopedic). Methods We searched in Epistemonikos, the largest database of systematic reviews in health, which is maintained by screening multiple information sources, including MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, among others. We extracted data from the systematic reviews, reanalyzed data of primary studies, conducted a meta-analysis and generated a summary of findings table using the GRADE approach. Results and conclusions We identified eight systematic reviews including 66 primary studies overall, of which six were randomized trials. We concluded surgical treatment of mandibular condyle fractures, compared to conservative treatment, is probably associated with less joint pain, less malocclusion and less lateral deviation in buccal opening.