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Home  Dentistry Articles Inferior alveolar nerve
Inferior alveolar nerve
The inferior alveolar nerve is a branch of
the mandibular nerve, which is itself the third branch (V3)
of the fifth cranial nerve, the trigeminal nerve (cranial nerve
V). The inferior alveolar nerve enters the mandible (lower jaw)
via the mandibular foramen, located on the medial surface of
the mandible. The inferior alveolar nerve is located in the
mandibular canal within the mandible, where it supplies the
mandibular (lower) teeth with sensory branches. Anteriorly,
the nerve exits the mandible via the mental foramen, where it
terminates as the mental nerve (supplying sensory branches to
the chin and lower lip).
The inferior alveolar nerve is a common target
for anesthesia during dental procedures involving the mandibular
teeth. Administration of anesthesia near the mandibular foramen
causes blockage of the inferior alveolar nerve and the nearby
lingual nerve (supplying the tongue). This is why the freezing
of the lower jaw during dental procedures causes the patient
to lose sensation in their teeth (inferior alveolar nerve block),
their lower lip and chin (mental nerve block), and their tongue
(lingual nerve block).
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