Lingual foramina and canals are located in the midline of the jaw, which are important due to their neurovascular content. The location of the lingual foramina and canals can be classified according to their relationship to the mental spines; upper, middle or lower. The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence, size and anatomic location of the lingual foramina and canals and in patients older than 18 years of age that were patients at the Universidad de Los Andes, Dentistry Clinic, San Bernardo, Santiago, Chile. Furthermore, to establish sex differences regarding the presence, location and diameter of lingual foramina. From the sample total, 296 foramina were found, from which 133 (45 %) were upper foramina, 43 (15 %) middle foramina and 120 (40 %) lower foramina. In both sexes the prevalence of upper foramina was higher. Regarding the vertical diameter of the foramina, the median of the upper foramina was 0.76 mm, the median of the middle foramina was 0.52 mm and the median of the lower foramina was 0.55 mm. As for the length of the lingual canals, the middle canal was the largest (7.48 mm), followed by the upper (7.53 mm) and the lower (6.83 mm). There was no statistically significant difference between sexes regarding the amount and size of the lingual foramina, neither regarding the size and age of the patients, but there was a difference between the lengths of the canals, being the male patients the ones that presented longer canals in the 3 different kinds. Because of the high prevalence of foramina and canals in the sample, it is recommended to consider them in the planning of surgical procedures on the mandible midline.

KEY WORDS: Cone Beam Computed Tomography; Lingual foramina; Mandible midline.