How dangerous are the skull base fractures

Fractures of the base of the skull are extremely dangerous injuries. In most cases, they lead to irreversible damage to nerve tissue, and often the result is the death of the patient. According to statistics, such damage is relatively rare - about 4% of craniocerebral injuries are fractures of the base of the skull.

The most common cause is a car accident. Much less often, a fracture appears with a strong impact on the lower jaw or region of the nose, as well as when falling from a high altitude.

Classification of fractures

As is known, the base of the human skull consists of occipital, temporal, latticed and cuneate bones. And similar injuries are classified by localization:

• Fractures of the anterior cranial fossa are accompanied by bone injuries that cover frontal lobes;
• If the bones covering the temporal lobes of the brain and the pituitary were damaged, the doctors talk about fractures of the middle cranial fossa;
• In traumas of the posterior cranial fossa, lesions of the bones covering the cerebellum are observed.

In addition, fractures of the base of the skull can be diagonal, transverse, longitudinal (occur in 75% of cases), oblique or accompanied by a detachment of the apex. Such damage is usually open. If the fracture is accompanied by the release of blood and cerebrospinal fluid, then in modern medicine it is treated as a penetrating trauma.

How dangerous is the fracture of the skull base bones ?

In fact, such damage is extremely dangerous, as it entails severe consequences. If the fracture is broken not only the integrity, but also the localization of the bones of the skull, as a result of which the hard tissues squeeze and even damage the brain, which, naturally, can not but affect the functioning of the nervous system.

For example, with a fracture of the temporal bones , damage to the auditory nerve is observed. If the trauma is caused in the cerebellum, complications such as paralysis or impaired coordination may occur. Displacement of bones often violates the integrity of the cranial nerves.

In addition, an open wound on the head is the gateway to infection. The most common consequences of a fracture include brain abscess, inflammation and suppuration of the meninges.

Major symptoms of fracture

Broken bones most often cause damage to this or that part of the brain, therefore the signs of such a trauma can be very different. As a rule, most patients feel the strongest headache, accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Fractures of the base of the skull are also accompanied by bleeding and discharge of cerebrospinal fluid from the ears and nose. In some cases, blood accumulates in the tympanum. Damage to the auditory nerve leads to a decrease in hearing, and with injury to the optic nerves, partial or total blindness is observed. Symptoms include circumclinical ecchymosis - bruising that occurs around the eyes and resembles glasses in shape.

Fracture of the base of the skull: treatment

The first aid is reduced to immobilization of the victim and imposing of a sterile bandage on the head. Before the arrival of a medical team, it is necessary to maintain warmth by warming a person with warmers or bottles of warm water. You can give the patient valocordin.

As for the treatment, everything here depends on the degree of damage to the bones and brain. Most often the patient needs large doses of antibiotics, which prevent the activation of the infection. The decision about a surgical intervention is accepted only by the attending neurosurgeon. Unfortunately, even a successful operation is not a guarantee of the full recovery of the victim.