Inferior Alveolar Nerve Injury during Implant Placement -A Review

Abstract

 The mandibular nerve is the third and most inferior division of the trigeminal, or fifth, cranial nerve. The trigeminal nerve is predominantly a sensory nerve, innervating most of the face.The IAN is a branch of the posterior division of the mandibular nerve that contains both sensory and motor fibers. It enters the mandibular foramen, runs in the mandibular canal, and supplies the mandibular teeth. It leaves the mandibular canal through the mental foramen as the mental nerve. Within the canal, the nerve is about 3 mm in diameter, and its course varies. It is interesting to know that the IAN is the most commonly injured nerve (64.4%), followed by the lingual nerve (28.8%). Inferior alveolar nerve injury is one of the most serious complications in implant dentistry. This nerve injury can occur during local anesthesia, implant osteotomy, or implant placement. Proper understanding of anatomy, surgical procedures, and implant systems and proper treatment planning is the key to reducing such an unpleasant complication. Effective management of these cases is based on providing treatment-conservative or surgical, immediately upon diagnosis of damage. That is to say, early diagnosis is the key for successful treatment. This review discusses the causes of inferior alveolar nerve injury and its diagnosis, prevention, and management.