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

摘要

BackgroundThe 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.