Intraoperative monitoring of the inferior alveolar nerve during mandibular sagittal-split osteotomy

In order to evaluate the risk of nerve injury and to prevent iatrogenic damage at different stages of bilateral sagittal‐split osteotomy (BSSO) of the mandible, we monitored the function of the inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) continuously on both sides in 13 orthognathic patients undergoing BSSO. The IAN was stimulated at the mental foramen with two monopolar needle electrodes fixed to the dental splint, and the orthodromic sensory nerve action potentials (SNAP) of the IAN were recorded with a silver‐wire electrode inserted near the oval foramen on each side. The latencies, amplitudes, and sensory nerve conduction velocities at baseline, after medial opening, sawing, splitting, eventual manipulation, and fixation of the mandible were analyzed. The monitoring method functioned technically well in 25 of 26 nerves. Both the surgical technique and the duration of medial opening had conspicuous effects on the function of the IAN, which led us to modify the medial approach. When finer instruments were used for retraction and the duration of medial opening was shortened to less than 10 min, the SNAP of the IAN was always preserved at this stage. Monitoring of the IAN also prevented nerve injury during splitting and fixation. This technique for intraoperative monitoring of the IAN seems to be a feasible and promising tool for objective evaluation of intraoperative events and for prevention of nerve injury during BSSO. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Muscle Nerve 23: 368–375, 2000