Evaluation of unilateral condyle head fracture on panoramic and CBCT imaging: a case report
Abstract
Objectives: This case report aimed to describe the radiographic characteristics of the fracture of the condyle’s head and its impact on surrounding tissues in a young adult patient using panoramic and CBCT radiographs.Case Report: A 19-year-old female patient presented to the Dental Radiology Unit of Dental Hospital Universitas Padjadjaran with a panoramic and periapical referral letter, diagnosed clinically with a dental fracture of the upper left central incisor, and planning to have orthodontic treatment. The patient had a history of a motorcycle accident in early January 2024 and was hit on the left side of her face. Extraoral examination revealed an asymmetrical facial appearance with mandible deviation, mouth opening limitation, and crepitation on palpation test. Intraoral examination showed a traumatic ulcer in the upper left lip region (tooth 22) and a dental fracture on tooth 21. Oral hygiene was in good condition. The first panoramic radiograph (January 19th, 2024) showed a fracture on the right condyle’s head. It referred to taking the CBCT examination (May 28th, 2024) to know the exact position and the destruction of the condyle’s head. The CBCT examination showed a radiolucent line crossing horizontally on the left condyle’s head; the joint space was larger than on the other side.
Conclusion: Based on the CBCT results in terms of location and radiographic feature, this radiolucent line led to a suspect radiodiagnosis of unilateral fracture on the left condyle’s head that causes pain and limited mouth opening.
Keywords: CBCT, condyle’s head, fracture, panoramic, temporomandibular joint
References
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2. Damayanti MA, Azhari A, Epsilawati L. Evaluasi gambaran radiografi CBCT fraktur kepala kondilus pada anak. Jurnal Radiologi Dentomaksilofasial Indonesia (JRDI). 2020;4(3):79
3. Samad S, Sjamsudin E, Tasman A. Tingkat Kejadian Trauma Maksilofasial. Akibat Kecelakaan Kendaraan Bermotor di Kota Bandung, Provinsi Jawa Barat. Mulawarman Dent J. 2021;1(1):25–30.
4. Naveen Shankar A, Naveen Shankar V, Hegde N, Sharma, Prasad R. The pattern of the maxillofacial fractures - A multicentre retrospective study. Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery. 2012;40(8):675–9
5. Vanpoecke J, Dubron K, Politis C. Condylar Fractures: An Argument for Conservative Treatment. Craniomaxillofac Trauma Reconstr. 2020;13(1):23–31
6. Fridrich K, Pena-Velasca G, Olson R. Changing Trends with Mandibular Fractures: a review of 1067 cases. J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 1992;50(6):586–589
7. Neff A, Cornelius CP, Rasse M, Torre DD, Audigé L. The comprehensive AOCMF classification system: Condylar process fractures - Level 3 tutorial. Caniomaxillofac Trauma Reconstruction. 2014;7(1):44–58
8. Ruslin M, Wolff J, Forouzanfar T, Boffano P. Maxillofacial fractures associated with motor vehicle accidents: A review of the current literature. Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Medicine, and Pathology. 2015;27(3):303–307
9. Syaira Putri M, Pramanik F, Epsilawati L. DESCRIPTIONS OF CONDYLE HEAD POSITION IN DIGITAL PANORAMIC RADIOGRAPH OF CLICKING AND NONCLICKING PATIENTS AT RSGM UNPAD DENTAL RADIOLOGY INSTALLATION. Dentino (Jur. Ked. Gigi). 2019;IV(2):210–213
10. Anjani KG, Nurrachman AS, Rahman FUA, Firman RN. Bentuk dan posisi kondilus sebagai marker pada Temporomandibular Disorder (TMD) melalui radiografi panoramik. Jurnal Radiologi Dentomaksilofasial Indonesia (JRDI). 2020;4(3):91
11. Faried A, Bachani AM, Sendjaja AN, Hung YW, Arifin MZ. Characteristics of Moderate and Severe Traumatic Brain Injury of Motorcycle Crashes in Bandung, Indonesia. World Neurosurg. 2017;100:195–200
12. Hupp JR. Contemporary Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. 7th ed. North Carolina: Elsevier. 2018; p.642-652
13. White SC, Pharoah MJ. Oral Radiology Principles and Interpretation. 7th ed. St.Louis, Missouri: Elsevier. 2014;p.492-520
14. Bordoni B, Varacallo M. Anatomy, Head, and Neck, Temporomandibular Joint. Treasure Island, Florida: StatPearls Publishing. 2023;p.1-3
15. Al-Koshab M, Nambiar P, John J. Assessment of condyle and glenoid fossa morphology using CBCT in south-east Asians. PLoS One. 2015;10(3):1-11
16. Scarfe WC, Angelopoulos C. Maxillofacial Cone Beam Computed Tomography Principles, Techniques and Clinical Applications. New York: Springer. 2018;p.951-1004
Published
2025-08-31
How to Cite
PUTRI, Meiryndra Syaira; SAM, Belly; EPSILAWATI, Lusi.
Evaluation of unilateral condyle head fracture on panoramic and CBCT imaging: a case report.
Jurnal Radiologi Dentomaksilofasial Indonesia (JRDI), [S.l.], v. 9, n. 2, p. 91-98, aug. 2025.
ISSN 2686-1321.
Available at: <http://jurnal.pdgi.or.id/index.php/jrdi/article/view/1256>. Date accessed: 29 nov. 2025.
doi: https://doi.org/10.32793/jrdi.v9i2.1256.
Section
Case Report
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
