Retrospective assessment of osteomyelitis. Etiology, demographics, risk factors, and management in 35 cases.

A retrospective review and analysis of the management of osteomyelitis in 35 patients at a major hospital complex has been made. In this patient population sample, trauma and odontogenic sources were determined to be the most prevalent causes of osteomyelitis of the jaws, which in the vast majority of cases affected the mandible. Alcohol and/or tobacco use was reported in at least one half of the cases surveyed. Surgical exploration and debridement were most frequently used during the treatment of these cases. The microbial causes of these lesions were most frequently mixed infections that originated from the oral cavity. Antimicrobial therapy most often used beta-lactam-bearing antibiotics, although combinations with other agents were often included. These and other data obtained through this study underscore the multifactored causes and therapeutic approaches found in osteomyelitis of the jaws.