Abstract
Aims: To compare three maxillary nerve block techniques of local anesthesia in terms of success dur-ing minor oral surgical procedures on maxillary teeth. Materials and Methods: The clinical trial was conducted at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery/ College of Dentistry/ Mosul Universi-ty. The subjects enrolled in the trial required surgical procedures on their upper anterior and / posterior teeth. The sample included 60 subjects who were divided into three groups of 20 each; Group I (control I) patients who were to receive the posterior superior alveolar nerve block technique. Group II (control II) patients who were to receive the infraorbital nerve block technique and Group III (control III) pa-tients who were to receive the maxillary nerve block technique of local anesthesia. For comparison, the following variables were recorded for the three techniques: Positive aspiration, onset of adequate surgi-cal anesthesia and pain grade scale during surgical procedure. Results: In regard to positive aspiration before injection of solution, the results showed no significant difference regarding positive aspiration among the three techniques. For onset of adequate surgical anesthesia, the results disclosed no signifi-cance difference in mean duration of onset of anesthesia among the three groups. In regard to pain ex-perienced during the surgical procedure , no significant difference was recorded among the three groups. Conclusions: The maxillary nerve block technique via the high tuberosity approach seems to be a safe and effective technique for achieving anesthesia of the hemimaxilla as long as there is strict adherence to the anatomical landmarks and approach described. The technique carries with it a high success rate and with specific applications can allow the dentist to provide painless dental treatment
