title: Neuropathic pain after orthognathic surgery.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study assesses the incidence of neuropathic pain after orthognathic surgery at our center and briefly reports the cases found.
  
  
  METHODS
  All records of orthognathic surgical patients between 2001 and 2011 were exported from the hospital information system into a Portable Document Format platform (Adobe Acrobat) to simplify keyword searching. Records of patients that developed debilitating chronic pain were isolated and examined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Records included 982 bilateral sagittal split osteotomies, 536 LeFort I procedures, and 335 surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion procedures. Six records were identified that described cases in which patients developed debilitating chronic neuropathic pain after orthognathic surgery (mean age at surgery, 43 years).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The exposure of the inferior alveolar nerve or partial axonal injury together with a disruption of the bony environment of the inferior alveolar nerve is a risk factor after bilateral sagittal split osteotomy.
authors.affiliation: Professor, Department of Oral Health Sciences; Professor and Department Head, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and University Hospitals Leuven; Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Hasselt University, Leuven. Electronic address: constantinus.politis@uzleuven.be.
authors.forename: Constantinus
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Politis
authors.affiliation: Professor and Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek; and St John's Hospital, Genk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Ivo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lambrichts
authors.affiliation: Professor, Department of Oral Health Sciences and Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and University Hospitals Leuven; Researcher, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, St John's Hospital, Genk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jimoh Olubanwo
authors.initials: JO
authors.lastname: Agbaje
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D020209:Cranial Nerve Injuries / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008340:Mandibular Nerve; D008875:Middle Aged; D009437:Neuralgia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D056948:Orthognathic Surgical Procedures; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011862:Radiography, Panoramic; D012307:Risk Factors