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Case Reports
. 2012 Oct;5(4):360-2.
doi: 10.4103/0974-2700.102415.

Squash(ed): Craniofacial and vertebral injury from collision on squash court

Alp Atik  1 , Matthew Krilis, Geoffrey Parker
Affiliations
Case Reports

Squash(ed): Craniofacial and vertebral injury from collision on squash court

Alp Atik et al. J Emerg Trauma Shock. 2012 Oct.

Abstract

Squash is a popular racquet sport not usually associated with severe head or spinal injury. The incidence of squash-related injury ranges from 35.5 to 80.9 per 100,000 players, with the most common sites being the lower-limbs and eyes. We present a case of extensive traumatic craniomaxillofacial and vertebral injury resulting from collision on a squash court, without use of protective gear. The patient sustained fractures of the frontal bone, orbits, maxillae, zygomas, the first and second cervical vertebrae and the spinous process of the seventh cervical vertrebra. This is the first case of squash-related injury with such extensive craniofacial and vertebral involvement. This unique case required multiple surgical procedures as well as an extensive admission to the intensive care unit and highlights the risk of significant craniomaxillofacial trauma in sports not usually associated with such injuries.

Keywords: Athletic injuries; bone; craniocerebral trauma; fractures; spinal injuries.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Anterior and anterolateral views of three-dimensional CT reconstructions demonstrating LeFort Type II, frontal, orbital and zygomatic fractures
Figure 2
Figure 2
Anterolateral view 3 dimensional CT reconstruction demonstrating Type 3 dens fracture with posterior displacement and fracture of C7 spinous process
Figure 3
Figure 3
Post-operative lateral X-ray of the cervical spine in extension demonstrating union of dens fracture with overall alignment in-tact
Figure 4
Figure 4
Post-operative coronal CT demonstrating surgical correction of multiple craniofacial fracture sites
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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