ABSTRACT
The middle third of the facial skeleton is a collective of structures situated between the skull base and the occlusal plane. At a superficial level, these fractures are considered eponymously with respect to Rene Le Fort’s classification but in reality there is considerable overlap with fractures of the zygomatic complex and nasoethmoidal regions. The bulk of the central middle third of the facial skeleton is composed of the paired maxillary bones which separate the oral cavity from the nose, support the teeth, form the lateral aspect and floor of the nose together with forming the orbital floor and medial aspect of the orbital rim. The blood supply of the middle third is significant and intellectually represents an anastomosis between internal and external carotid artery systems. Physical examination involves a detailed extra- and intraoral examination of all of the potential fracture articulations.
