skip to main content

Condylar Fracture Clinical Signs — ORE Part 1 MCQ

Instant feedback + full explanation. One question, done properly.

ModerateOral SurgeryCondylar Fracture Clinical SignsORE Part 1

A patient attends primary dental care after a blow to the chin. On opening, the mandible deviates to the right. There is a new right posterior premature contact and a contralateral open bite. A right mandibular condylar fracture is suspected. What is the most appropriate initial management?

Educational content. Not a substitute for clinical judgement or local policy.

Reveal the answer and explanation

Correct answer: A — Refer urgently to OMFS for assessment and imaging; provide analgesia and soft-diet advice

Explanation lettering: C = shown as B · B = shown as C · E = shown as D · D = shown as E

**A is correct.** A blow to the chin with deviation towards the right on opening and a new traumatic malocclusion is strongly suggestive of a right condylar fracture. UK guidance identifies deviation of mandibular movement and altered occlusion as diagnostic features and requires imaging evidence to establish the fracture and its displacement. Initial care in primary dental practice is therefore prompt OMFS referral, with analgesia and soft-diet advice while awaiting specialist assessment. Definitive treatment depends on imaging, displacement and occlusal disturbance; it may be conservative, functional fixation or open reduction. B delays assessment of a traumatic malocclusion. C pre-empts specialist diagnosis and is not a primary-care procedure. D treats a fracture-related occlusal change destructively. E may form part of specialist functional management in selected cases, but is not an appropriate empirical initial intervention.

Reference: Faculty of Dental Surgery, Royal College of Surgeons of England. Management of Unilateral Fractures of the Condyle, section 1 Diagnostic Criteria and section 2 Treatment. 1997. https://rcseng.ac.uk/-/media/files/rcs/fds/publications/ncg97.pdf