Airway management in maxillofacial gunshot injury: A case report and literature review

K. N. J. Prakash Raju, D Anandhi, Joseph Alexis, K Aswin, Vinay R Pandit

African Journal of Trauma 2017 6(1):23-25

Airway management of patients with maxillofacial trauma is complex and crucial because it can dictate a patient's survival. Often, the status of the cervical spine is unknown in the acute setting, and care must be taken to prevent inadvertent neurological injury. Airway management is a unique and a defining element to the specialty of Emergency Medicine. Failure to secure the airway can drastically increase the morbidity and mortality of the patient within few minutes. Here, we report a case of a young man with shattered mandible following gunshot injury, presenting with airway compromise. Our emergency team successfully managed his airway, and he got operated and successfully discharged without any morbidity.

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