RADIOGRAPHIC LOCALIZATION OF MANDIBULAR ANESTHESIA LANDMARKS

The objective of this study was to assess whether bony landmarks used for the standard inferior alveolar nerve block can be used to accurate ly determine the position of the mandibular foramen and whether panora mic radiographs are appropriate for this purpose. A total of 11 landma rks from 79 panoramic radiographs and 70 corresponding cases of obliqu e (45-degree) cephalometric radiographs were examined. Ten measurement s of the distance from each landmark to the mandibular foramen, as wel l as 6 ratios from these distances, were calculated from all radiograp hs. The results showed that the position of the mandibular foramen was highly individualistic and not consistently related to traditional cl inical landmarks. Panoramic radiographs were as good as oblique cephal ometric radiographs for the locating of the mandibular foramen. No age or gender correlations were found. It was concluded that the mandibul ar foramen can be localized in panoramic radiographs but that its rela tion to bony landmarks is highly variable.