A Hypothesis and Pilot Study of Age-Related Sensory Innervation of the Hard Palate: Sensory Disorder After Nasopalatine Nerve Division

BACKGROUND: The nasopalatine nerve may be injured during extraction of teeth embedded in the anterior hard palate. The neural recovery process and its impact on sensation in the anterior hard palatal region are controversial. In our clinical practice, we noticed a distinct recovery process in children compared with adolescents or adults after surgery. We hypothesized that the sensory innervations of the anterior palate might shift during later childhood and pre-adolescence, which is due to the development of the nasopalatine nerve along with the maxillary growth and permanent teeth eruption. MATERIAL/METHOD: Forty patients (20 females and 20 males, mean age 11.8±2.2) with impacted supernumerary teeth in anterior palatine area were included into our study, and were divided into 3 groups according to their age. A 24-week follow-up was conducted and the sensation in the anterior hard palate region was examined at every check point. All the data were collected and analyzed by Kaplan-Meier analysis. RESULTS: Fourteen children did not complain of any numbness immediately after anesthetization, and other children with sensory disorders had shorter healing periods compared to adolescent/adult patients. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that the dominant nerve of the anterior hard palate region was dramatically changed from the greater palatine nerve to the nasopalatine nerve, which is important in deciding when to operate and in selection of anesthesia method.