Could a digital panoramic X-ray not detect a displaced fracture of the mandible?

摘要

We have read with great interest the correspondence of Naeem et al. [2017] which demonstrated a very rich and informative review of imaging in mandibular fractures (1). It was mentioned in this review that the panoramic X-ray is one of the most informative and sensitive radiographs in detecting a mandibular fracture (1). On the contrary, a limitation of this type of radiography is that it may not provide sufficient details of condylar fractures (1). Hereby, we aim to report a very unusual case of two fractures of the mandible: the first was a widely displaced parasymphyseal fracture that was not detected by the panorama at all; the other was a condylar fracture which was clearly visible in the same radiographic image.