Mandibular canal
Encyclopedia
The mandibular canal is a canal within the mandible that contains the inferior alveolar nerve
Inferior alveolar nerve
The inferior alveolar nerve is a branch of the mandibular nerve, which is itself the third branch of the trigeminal nerve .-Path:...

, inferior alveolar artery
Inferior alveolar artery
- Course :It descends with the inferior alveolar nerve to the mandibular foramen on the medial surface of the ramus of the mandible.It runs along the mandibular canal in the substance of the bone, accompanied by the nerve, and opposite the first premolar tooth divides into two branches, incisor and...

, and inferior alveolar vein. It runs obliquely downward and forward in the ramus, and then horizontally forward in the body, where it is placed under the alveoli and communicates with them by small openings.

On arriving at the incisor teeth, it turns back to communicate with the mental foramen
Mental foramen
The mental foramen is one of two holes located on the anterior surface of the mandible. It permits passage of the mental nerve and vessels. The mental foramen descends slightly in edentulous individuals.- Variations :...

, giving off a small canal known as the mandibular incisive canal
Mandibular incisive canal
The mandibular incisive canal is a bony canal within the anterior mandible that runs bilaterally from the mental foramina usually to the region of the ipsilateral lateral incisor teeth...

, which run to the cavities containing the incisor teeth.

It carries branches of the inferior alveolar nerve and artery.

It is continuous with the mental foramen
Mental foramen
The mental foramen is one of two holes located on the anterior surface of the mandible. It permits passage of the mental nerve and vessels. The mental foramen descends slightly in edentulous individuals.- Variations :...

 (which opens onto front of mandible) and mandibular foramen
Mandibular foramen
The Mandibular foramen is an opening on the internal surface of the ramus for divisions of the mandibular vessels and nerve to pass.-Contents:...

(on medial aspect of ramus).

Variations

The mandibular canal is fairly close to the apices of the second molar in 50% of the radiographs. In 40%, canal is away from the root apices, and in only 10% of the radiographs the root apices appeared to penetrate the canal.
In root canal therapy of the second molar one should be cautious of over extending the reamer or the root canal filling materials because there is a possible risk of inferior alveolar nerve injury.http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http://www.geocities.com/akramjfr/mandbCanal.html&date=2009-10-25+12:10:14
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