Surgical extraction of lower third molars: diagnostic tests and operative technique in the prevention of inferior alveolar nerve injury. Case study.

Increased knowledge and technical refinement have broadened the limits of outpatient oral surgery; however, these changes have at the same time led to a greater number of complications and poor outcomes and, accordingly, to legal action for professional responsibility. Oral surgery represents 10% of all actions, and almost all of these are attributable to exodontic surgery, of which around a third are related to inferior alveolar nerve injury following the extraction of lower third molars.The aim of this case study is to suggest operative technical strategies in accordance with a correct clinical-diagnostic pathway in order to prevent neurological complications involving the inferior alveolar nerve subsequent to lower third molar extraction. Cases should be carefully selected and surgical intervention undertaken solely when genuinely necessary. The patient should be informed of the risks, the methods and the possible results of the treatment. These are the bases for correct indication, along with a sufficient diagnostic path and a good level of communication between operator and patient.