Sports-Related Pure Orbital Blowout Fractures in Japan: Differences in Demographic and Clinical Characteristics between Sports

Abstract

The aim of this study was to present the demographic and clinical characteristics of sports-related pure (rim-sparing) orbital blowout fractures and to analyze these differences by type of sport. Ten years of sports-related orbital fracture data were accumulated. Patients were classified into similar sports (i.e., soccer and futsal) wherein orbital blowout fractures were obtained, producing 14 groups. This study included 377 sides from 374 patients. The majority of patients were male (83.4%), and the mean population age was 20.9 ± 10.8 years. The most common sports causing injuries were baseball/softball, rugby/football, and martial arts. Single-wall fractures were found in 78.8% of patients, but baseball/softball had a higher frequency of multiple-wall fractures (p = 0.035). Concomitant ocular and periocular injuries occurred in 18.6% of patients, which were frequently caused by baseball/softball (p < 0.001). The field of binocular single vision (BSV) included primary gaze in 84.2% of patients. Surgical management was conducted in 52.1% of patients. This study showed that baseball and softball had the highest rate of multi-wall fractures and concomitant ocular and periocular injuries. The field of BSV measured during the first examination was acceptable in most cases.

Keywords

• sports-related fracture
• pure orbital blowout fracture
• binocular single vision
• fracture pattern
• ocular and periocular injuries