Back

Volume 16 , Issue 1
January/February 1996
Pages 41-46

Is there an anterior loop of the inferior alveolar nerve?

Rosenquist

PMID: 8631609
DOI: 10.11607/prd.00.0157

The inferior alveolar nerve has an anterior ramification with two terminal branches, the mental nerve and the anterior plexus (or incisor nerve ). The mental nerve is described to have a superior, lateral, and posterior course formed as a loop. The length of the loop is reported to be between 3 and 7 mm. In the present study, dissection of the ramification of the inferior alveolar neurovascular bundle was performed unilaterally in 58 patients. In 43 patients no loop was found, in 13 cases the loop was 0.5 mm, and in two cases the loop was 1.0 mm long. In addition, the anatomy of the ramification with the mental and incisor canals frequently diverged in other respects from prevalent descriptions in the literature.

Full Text PDF File | Order Article

 

 

Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view PDF files. This is a free program available from the Adobe web site.
Follow the download directions on the Adobe web site to get your copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader.