TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2019//
TI  - Early return to sport post maxillofacial fracture injury in the professional athlete: a systematic review
JO  - Journal of craniomaxillofacial surgery
A1  - Ansari, Umair
A1  - Wong, Eugene
A1  - Arvier, John
A1  - Hyam, Dylan M.
A1  - Huang, Weber
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - INTRODUCTION: To summarize the current literature on return to sport times post-maxillofacial fracture injury in the professional athlete. <br><br>MATERIALS AND METHODS: A literature search on six databases for articles relating to maxillofacial fractures, professional athletes, and return to sport times. Study design, clinical data, and author recommendations were analysed. <br><br>RESULTS: 17 studies were retrieved. One prospective study returned 17 athletes to competitive rugby union and soccer at 3 weeks post injury without complication. Two large retrospective studies (n = 278) returned patients to sport at approximately 7 weeks without complication. 64% (n = 7) of patients from case based studies returned to sport at 3-14 days, 4 of which utilized protective facemasks. Athletes generally returned to competition earlier for lower grade (3-10 days) compared to higher grade contact sport (21 days at least). 2 articles recommended a 3 months recovery period for combat sports. 8 articles supported the utility of protective facemasks. <br><br>CONCLUSION: Early return to sport (<6 weeks) in the professional athlete post maxillofacial fracture injury is achievable. The optimal clinical approach may be to grade the sport according to its impact forces, discuss an early return with reference to the available literature, the potential utility of facemasks, risks of refracture and its operative implications.<br><br>Copyright © 2019 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1010-5182
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcms.2019.06.001
ID  - ref1
ER  -