title: Use of Intraoperative Navigation for Minimally Invasive Retrieval of a Broken Dental Needle.
abstract: This report describes a case of needle breakage during an inferior alveolar nerve block to perform a restorative dental procedure on a 13-year-old patient. The needle was removed in a minimally invasive fashion using a Medtronic StealthStation S7 surgical navigation system and custom interocclusal splint to allow for stable, identically repeatable positioning of the mandible. This report adds another example of the utility of image-guided surgery for the removal of foreign bodies from the head and neck region in a minimally invasive fashion.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Assistant Professor, Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Hospital Dentistry Institute, The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, IA. Electronic address: kyle-stein@uiowa.edu.
authors.forename: Kyle M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007432:Intraoperative Period; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D009339:Needles; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed