Research Article
Assessment of Anterior Loop of Inferior Alveolar Nerve and Its
Anatomic Variations with Age, Gender, and Dentition Status in
Indian Population: A CBCT Study
Anjali Gupta,
1
Sandeep Kumar,
2
Siddharth Kumar Singh,
3
Arunoday Kumar,
4
Abhishek Gupta ,
5
and Palkin Mehta
3
1
Department of Dentistry, Saraswati Medical College, Unnao, Uttarpradesh 209859, India
2
Department of Public Health Dentistry, Dental Institute, Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences, Ranchi,
Jharkhand 834009, India
3
Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Saraswati Dental College, Lucknow 227105, India
4
Department of Prosthodontics and Crown and Bridge, Dental College, Regional Institute of Medical Sciences, Imphal,
Manipur 795004, India
5
Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Chitwan Medical College, Bharatpur 44207, Nepal
Correspondence should be addressed to Abhishek Gupta; gupta.abhishek@cmc.edu.np
Received 16 July 2021; Revised 18 August 2021; Accepted 20 August 2021; Published 31 August 2021
Academic Editor: Luca Testarelli
Copyright © 2021 Anjali Gupta et al. is is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Background. e posterior region of the mandible is more often related to iatrogenic errors, but the interforaminal region is also
not spared for neurovascular complications. is study aimed to use CBCT images to evaluate the prevalence of anterior nerve
looping and its variations with age, gender, and dentition status. Methods. is retrospective study was carried out by studying 600
CBCTscans retrieved from archival records of a CBCTcenter in Lucknow. e scans were inspected by two trained investigators.
e length of the anterior loop was measured using the measuring tool of Carestream 3D imaging software. Descriptive and
analytical tests were performed. Results. e prevalence of the anterior loop of the inferior alveolar nerve was found to be 56%. e
prevalence was found to be more on the right side (29.0%) compared to the left side (27.0%). e most common anterior looping
of the inferior alveolar nerve was type 3 followed by type 1. Males were found to have significantly higher loops compared to
females. e number of loops was found to decrease significantly with age. e mean length of the loop was found to vary from
1.14to1.61mm. Conclusion. e anterior looping of IAN is very much prevalent in the Lucknow population. e use of the CBCT
technique and appropriate preplanning prior to surgery or implant placement should be performed to prevent nerve injury.
1.Introduction
e fifth cranial nerve is known as the trigeminal nerve and
has three branches which are the ophthalmic, maxillary, and
mandibular. e third branch is called the mandibular
nerve. It is the largest of the three branches and carries both
afferent and efferent fibers. e mandibular nerve innervates
the lower face and the mandible, including the teeth, the
temporomandibular joint, and the mucous membrane of the
mouth and the anterior two-thirds of the tongue, the
mastication muscles, and some smaller muscles [1–3].
e inferior alveolar nerve is a mandibular nerve branch.
e inferior alveolar nerve may extend beyond the mental
foramen in an anterior and inferior direction, curving back
to the foramen and forming a loop, which has been termed
the anterior loop of the inferior alveolar nerve, of the mental
nerve, or the mandibular canal [4–6]. e prevalence of the
inferior alveolar nerve anterior loop has been found to be
highly variable ranging from 22% to 94% [7, 8]. In addition,
the length of the inferior alveolar nerve anterior loop has
shown variations up to a maximum of 11 mm [9]. Some
variations in the prevalence of the inferior alveolar nerve
Hindawi
International Journal of Dentistry
Volume 2021, Article ID 1813603, 6 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/1813603