Physical health of the patients with post-traumatic defects of the skull’s visceral part of the middle zone

Objective. To evaluate the physical component of the quality of life of patients with post-traumatic defects of the upper and middle part of the visceral skull. Material and methods. The study included 78 patients over the age of 18 with post-traumatic defects and deformities of the middle zone of the face. All patients underwent an analysis of the mechanism of injury and the nature of the damage. The physical component of quality of life was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire in several key areas: physical functioning, limitations in daily life due to health problems, as well as pain intensity and overall perception of one’s condition. Results. The SF-36 physical component summary score assessment showed that all patients experienced moderate pain (48.1±7.9 points) and significant limitation of physical activity (47.3±6.1 points), which led to noticeable difficulties in daily life and overall health deterioration. Diplopia (r=0.83), pain in the injured area (r=0.85), and limited jaw mobility (r=0.80) (p <0.0001) also lead to significant limitations and poor health outcomes. Conclusion. The prospects of this study are the standardization and digitalization of the preoperative examination protocol for patients with injuries to the bones of the visceral part of the skull. The results are of great clinical importance for the development of comprehensive rehabilitation programs for patients with post-traumatic deformities of the middle zone of the facial part of the skull, which corresponds to modern approaches to personalized treatment strategies.