The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between the buccolingual position of the mandibular canal on preoperative CT and neurosensory disturbance after sagittal split ramus osteotomy (SSRO) in Japanese orthodontic patients.
The study subjects were 134 patients who underwent SSRO at the University Hospital (49 males and 85 females), with a mean age of 27.2 years (range, 17-51.75 years). Patients were divided into three groups regarding the buccolingual position of the mandibular canal: separated, contact, and fused.
There was no difference in the appearance of postoperative neurosensory disturbance on the left and right sides. Morphological classification of the mandibular canal was: 57.1% for the separated type, 27.2% for the contact type, and 15.7% for the fused type. Our results revealed that the frequency of neurosensory disturbance was high in the fused type and low in the separated type.
