Themandibular incisive canal: an anatomical risk? Tomodensitometric study and clinical applications - ROS - 2012 - Tome 41 - N°3

The interforaminalmandibular region is the concern of numerous surgical interventions namely during the placement of dental implants, during bone grafting, genioplasties as well as the removal of bone tumors. The obligation to keep a line of security from the mental foramen and the presence of its eventual anterior loop was reported many times in the literature. The persistence of post-operative sensitivity on this zone probably evokes the involvement of the incisive canal and its neurovascular bundle. This tomodensitometric study aims to document its precise tridimensional position, its diameter and visibility. In 98.5% of the cases, the incisive canal is visible in its original position. In 74% of the cases it is found at the level of the canine and in 28% at the level of the lateral incisor. If substantial inter-individual variations have been observed, there was no significant difference in sex, age or in the absence of teeth concerning its visibility, diameter or location in the horizontal plane. The literature reports transient or permanent disorders following the placement of implants in the interforaminal zone or during symphyseal bone grafts. Thus, in its initial part the incisive canal must be apprehended like the mandibular canal and that the interforaminal chin region, which is considered as a bone grafting zone, is where nervous lesions are consequential.