Assessment of trigeminal nerve functions by quantitative sensory testing in patients and healthy volunteers.
OBJECTIVE
Orofacial sensory dysfunction plays an important role in oral and maxillofacial surgery. Quantitative sensory testing (QST) is a psychophysical approach to evaluate thermal and mechanical somatosensation.


METHODS
The present human study 1) collected normative QST data in extraoral and intraoral regions, 2) analyzed effects of age, gender, and anatomical sites on QST, and 3) applied QST in 11 patients with iatrogenic inferior alveolar nerve lesions. Sixty (30 male and 30 female) healthy volunteers were tested bilaterally in the innervation areas of infraorbital, mental, and lingual nerves. Ten patients with sensory disturbances in innervation areas of the mental nerve were investigated at 1, 4, and 8 weeks after surgery. Another patient with a complete sensory loss after surgery was repetitively tested within 453 days after primary surgery (dental implant) and subsequent surgical reconstruction of the inferior alveolar nerve by autologous graft.


RESULTS
Older subjects were significantly less sensitive than younger subjects for thermal parameters. Thermal detection thresholds in infraorbital and mental regions showed higher sensitivity in women. Sensitivity to thermal stimulation was higher in the infraorbital region than in the mental and lingual regions. QST monitored somatosensory deficits and recovery of inferior alveolar nerve functions in all patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Age, gender, and anatomic region affect various QST parameters. QST might be useful in the diagnosis of inferior alveolar nerve disorders in patients. In dentistry, the monitoring of afferent nerve fiber functions by QST might support decisions on further interventions.
Yekta
Sareh Said
SS
Department of Conservative Dentistry, Periodontology and Preventive Dentistry, Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
Smeets
Ralf
R
Stein
Jamal M
JM
Ellrich
Jens
J
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D020209:Cranial Nerve Injuries / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D003758:Dental Implantation, Endosseous / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008340:Mandibular Nerve / Q000503:physiopathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009460:Neurologic Examination / Q000379:methods*; D009915:Orbit / Q000294:innervation; D010292:Paresthesia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012016:Reference Values; D012684:Sensory Thresholds; D012737:Sex Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014081:Tooth Extraction / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014276:Trigeminal Nerve / Q000503:physiopathology*; D061221:Trigeminal Nerve Injuries; D055815:Young Adult