Abstract: PURPOSE : A retrospective study on the characteristics of patient, clinical symptoms, etiology of oral and maxillofacial space infection and involved spaces, treatment and complications in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region was carried out, in order to identify factors predisposing to life-threatening complications and provide references for prevention of complications. METHODS : The clinical data of 133 patients with oral and maxillofacial infection treated in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University were retrospectively analyzed from May 2013 to May 2015.Univariate analysis and multivariate analysis were done for identifying associations of patient characteristics with complications by SPSS 16.0 software package. RESULTS : Out of 133 patients identified, 52.6% were male, 47.4% were female. The average interval time from presence of symptoms to hospitalization was 23.8 days. The mean age of patients was 45.9 years and 35.3% of the patients had diabetes. The most common odontogenic infection was periapical periodontitis. Thirty-five (26.3%) patients had pupal infection. The most commonly involved space was massteric space. In non-odontogenic infection, the most common origin was glandular infection with 15 cases(11.2%). The most commonly involved space was submental space. Twenty two patients (16.5%) developed complications. Multiple space involvement and leukocyte count≥15×10⁹/L were independent predictors of complications. CONCLUSIONS : Patients with oral and maxillofacial space infection who present multiple space involvement, a high leukocyte count, and those with diabetes are the higher risk factors of developing life-threatening complications and need to be closely monitored.

Key words: Oral and maxillofacial space infection, Odontogenic infection, Non-odontogenic infection, Complications