Intra-oral Drainage of Submandibular Abscess: A Minimally Invasive Technique. A Prospective Study

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of intraoral drainage of isolated submandibular space abscess as a minimally invasive surgical technique compared to the standard trans-cervical approach. Patients and Methods: This prospective study included 40 subjects with isolated submandibular space abscesses. They were randomly divided into 2 equal groups: trans-cervical surgical drainage (group A) and intra-oral surgical drainage (group B). The included data were demographics, repeated surgery requirement, postsurgical hospitalization duration, formation of scar, and complications. Results: Intraoral drainage (Group B) reduced the mean operative time by 15.25 min (P