Atson Carlos de Souza Fernandes; Raquel Pimentel Loureiro; Leonardo Oliveira & Márcio de Moraes

Summary

The mandibular foramen and its lingula is a major landmark when administering anesthetic or performing surgical procedures. The objective of this study was to determine whether the topological features of the mandibular foramen (MF) and lingula varied in mandibles from skulls of different cephalic indexes. The location of the mandibular foramen referred to the longitudinal borders of the mandibular ramus (MR), height of the foramen (Hf) referred to the occlusal line of the second molar, and the height of the lingula (Hl) were determined in a total of one hundred and five dry mandibles from skulls identified as dolicho- meso- and brachycephalic. On average MF in brachycephalic mandibles was closest to the anterior border of MR. Hf in brachy-, meso- and dolichocephalic mandibles were -0.22 mm, -4.04 mm and -4,01mm, respectively. The lingula in brachycephalic specimens was considerably shorter (0.78 mm) than in dolichocephalic ones (1.84 mm). Inferior alveolar nerve block should be carried out using shorter needles, inserting it 4mm above the occlusion level of the molar teeth. The ramus of brachicephalic mandibles were significantly less wide those of dolicho- and mesocephalic ones. If the height of the lingula is to be used as a reference to judge the level of the medial horizontal cut to carry out sagittal split ramus osteotomy, special attention should be given to the patient's cephalic index.

KEY WORDS: Lingula; Mandibular foramen; Cephalic index.

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