RARE ANATOMIC VARIATIONS: AGENESIS OF LEFT MENTAL FORAMEN COEXISTING WITH TWO RIGHT MENTAL FORAMINA

Abstract

Knowledge about the proximity of important anatomical structures is crucial for all surgical interventions, including those in the lower jaw region. One of these important structures is the mental foramen, which transmits the mental nerve, whose branches provide sensory innervation to the chin, lower lip, and gingiva. The mental foramen variations can influence the effectiveness of the mental nerve anesthesia and can also be related to complications during surgical procedures such as implant placement, apicoectomy, vestibuloplasty, etc. We present a very rare case of agenesis of left mental foramen coexisting with two right mental foramina incidentally found in a patient examined by cone-beam computed tomography.

Keywords

• mental foramen
• accessory mental foramen
• agenesis
• cone-beam computed tomography
• mandible
• surgery