Temporal Bone Fractures and Related Complications in Pediatric and Adult Cranio-Facial Trauma: A Comparison of MDCT Findings in the Acute Emergency Setting.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the prevalence of and complications resulting from temporal bone fractures in adult and pediatric patients evaluated for cranio-facial trauma in an emergency setting. A retrospective blinded analysis of CT scans of a series of 294 consecutive adult and pediatric patients with cranio-facial trauma investigated in the emergency setting was conducted. Findings were compared between the two populations. Preliminary reports made by on-call residents were compared with the retrospective analysis, which was performed in consensus by two experienced readers and served as reference standard. CT revealed 126 fractures in 116/294 (39.5%) patients, although fractures were clinically suspected only in 70/294 (23.8%); Temporal bone fractures and related complications are common in patients with cranio-facial trauma and need to be thoroughly looked for; the pattern of associated injuries is slightly different in children and in adults.