A patient sustains a condylar fracture. In which direction does the condyle typically displace?

The condyle typically displaces medially and anteriorly after a condylar fracture because the lateral pterygoid muscle pulls it in that direction. The lateral pterygoid attaches to the condylar neck and pterygoid fovea and contracts, pulling the condyle medially and forward. This is why patients with condylar fractures often present with contralateral open bite (posterior open bite on the unaffected side) and deviation to the affected side.