Anatomical Examination of Mandibular Condyle Protrusion Into the Middle Cranial Fossa: Cadaveric Dissection

Trauma to the mandible can occasionally be a life-threatening event. Although extremely rare with only 56 reported patients in the English language, fracture of the floor of the middle cranial fossa with protrusion of the mandibular condyle into the middle cranial fossa was first reported in 1963 by Dingman. The authors review the anatomy of the temporomandibular joint in relation to the middle cranial fossa and demonstrate the possible complications due to condylar intrusion with anatomical dissection. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Joe Iwanaga, DDS, PhD, Seattle Science Foundation, 550 17th Ave, James Tower, Suite 600, Seattle, WA 98122; E-mail: joei@seattlesciencefoundation.org Received 13 December, 2017 Accepted 7 January, 2018 The authors report no conflicts of interest. © 2018 by Mutaz B. Habal, MD.

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