Testing biomechanical strength of repairs for the mandibular angle fracture.

A biomechanical model using polystyrene mandibles with simple angle fractures was developed to evaluate the structural strength of a variety of commonly used plate repairs. The model standardized the fracture location, load site, plate location, and site of deformation measurement. The only variables in the study were the nine different reconstruction types tested. Precise measurements of the deformation under load demonstrated statistically significant intra-group reproducibility for each repair. Data support previous clinical and experimental studies demonstrating the superiority of a two-plate system applied to the tension and compression regions of the mandible when compared to single-plate repairs using either noncompression (bridging) or eccentric dynamic compression plates.