Herbert cannulated bone screw osteosynthesis versus miniplates osteosynthesis in the treatment of mandibular angle fractures

Purpose: Mandibular angle fractures are commonly encountered in the maxillofacial field, their surgical treatment includes a wide range of fixation techniques. Herbert cannulated bone screw is a successful minimally invasive mean of fracture fixation that is used routinely in orthopedic surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic performance of a solitary Herbert bone screw in the treatment of mandibular angle fractures and compare it with the commonly established treatment modality with double 2.0-mm miniplates.
Patients and methods: Twenty patients, 15 males and 5 females,with unilateral isolated fracture in the mandibular angle region were selected and randomly allocated into the following groups: group I (n=10) treated with a solitary Herbert Bone Screw and group II (n=10) treated with doubleminiplates. Patients were clinically and radiographically monitored for twelve weeks.
Results:The occlusal examination showed a normal occlusion in all of the cases in both groups. Both groups showed a statistically significant gain in the mean bone density across the follow-up period(P<0.001). The difference between groups was statistically insignificant (P=0.761).
Conclusions: The utilization of a solitary Herbert cannulated bone screw osteosynthesis provides a successful, more economic, minimally invasive and predictable treatment modality for the treatment of mandibular angle fractures.