Sports related maxillofacial injuries: the first maxillofacial trauma database in Switzerland.

BACKGROUND With the increase in the amount of medical data handled by emergency units, advances in computerisation have become necessary. New computer technology should have a major influence on accident analysis and prevention and the quality of research in the future. OBJECTIVES To investigate the occurrence of sports related maxillofacial injuries using a newly installed relational database. To establish the first sports trauma database in Switzerland. METHODS The Qualicare databank was used to prospectively review 57 248 case histories of patients treated in the Department of Emergency Medicine between January 2000 and December 2002. Pre-defined key words were used to collect data on sports related maxillofacial injuries. RESULTS A total of 750 patients with maxillofacial injuries were identified. Ninety (12%) were sports related maxillofacial fractures. Most (27%) were sustained during skiing and snowboarding, 22% during team sports such as soccer or ice hockey, and 21% were from cycling accidents. Sixty eight per cent of the cyclists, 50% of the ice hockey players and soccer players, and 48% of the skiers and snowboarders had isolated fractures of the midface. Fractures of the mandible were noted predominantly in contact sports. CONCLUSIONS Computerisation of trauma and emergency units and the introduction of customised software can significantly reduce the workload of researchers and doctors. The effective use of new computer technology should have a considerable influence on research and the quality of future prospective and retrospective studies.