Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsAnatomyFunctionsAssociated ConditionsRehabilitation

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Anatomy

Functions

Associated Conditions

Rehabilitation

The mandibular nerve is the largest of the three divisions of thetrigeminal nervethat services the lower lip, lower teeth, gums, chin, and jaw. Unlike the other parts of the trigeminal nerve that only provide sensations (like touch and temperature), the mandibular nerve also controls the movements of muscles involved in mastication (chewing).

Because of its dual functions, an injury to the mandibular nerve may not only cause pain or numbness but also affect how your jaw opens and closes.

This article describes the anatomy and function of the mandibular nerve and the conditions that can adversely affect it. It also explains how injuries are treated and what is involved in rehabilitation.

Anatomy of the Mandibular Nerve

The mandibular nerve,ophthalmic nerve, andmaxillary nerveare the three divisions of the trigeminal nerve, also known as the fifthcranial nerve. The mandibular nerve is the largest division.

The trigeminal nerve is a set of two nerves that originate at a nerve cluster called thetrigeminal ganglionsituated below your temples. One trigeminal nerve runs to the right side of your face, while the other runs to the left side of your face.

The mandibular nerve services the lower face, providing sensory and/or motor function to:

The mandibular nerve also consists of several branches, including theanterior divisionwhich services the inner cheek and jaw muscles, and theposterior divisionwhich services the tongue, teeth, chin, and lower lip.

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Woman with jaw pain talking to her doctor

Functions of the Mandibular Nerve

The mandibular nerve is unique in that it provides sensory and motor functions, whereas the ophthalmic and maxillary nerves only provide sensory functions. This is because the mandibular nerve is made up of two kinds of nerve fibers:

With the mandibular nerve, afferent nerves provide sensations ( pain, touch, temperature, itch, and stretching) to the lower face. These include:

Meanwhile, efferent nerves of the mandibular nerve direct the movement of the mastication muscles of the jaw. These include:

There are conditions that can directly or indirectly affect the mandibular nerve, the most common of which istrigeminal neuralgia. Dental procedures are also common causes of mandibular nerve injury along with facial trauma and certain medical procedures.

Trigeminal Neuralgia

Trigeminal neuralgia is a long-term pain condition affecting the trigeminal nerve. It is closely associated withtemporomandibular joint disorder (TMD)but may also be the result of facial trauma, tumors or cysts that compress the mandibular nerve, or degenerative nerve diseases likemultiple sclerosis.

Trigeminal neuralgia commonly involves the mandibular nerve given that TMD involves dysfunction of the hinge of the jaw, called thetemporomandibular joint.

Trigeminal neuralgia is typically unilateral (meaning affecting one side only). It rarely affects both sides of the face.

Dental Procedures

Dental procedures can directly compress, tear, or sever the mandibular nerve or indirectly compress or pinch the nerve due to inflammation or the formation of ahematoma(blood blister). This can cause severe, shooting nerve pain in some instances and throbbing pain or numbness in others.

One of the procedures that commonly causes mandibular nerve injury is awisdom tooth extraction. It is not uncommon after the removal of a wisdom tooth (also known as a third molar) to cause numbness, tingling sensations, or extreme sensitivity to touch, pressure, or temperature.

Other Causes

Radiation therapyused to treatoral cancersorhead and neck cancerscan also damage parts of the mandibular nerves. This can not only lead to pain, tenderness, or numbness but also affect hearing if thetensor tympanimuscle is affected.

On the flip side, the spread of cancer to the median pterygoid muscle can have the same effects.

Treatment of problems relating to the mandibular nerve depends largely on the nature of the damage and the symptoms it causes. Treatment may include anti-inflammatories, such as steroids or ibuprofen, and possibly surgical repair.

Several drugs can be used to treat trigeminal neuralgia, including:

Several surgical procedures are available for trigeminal neuralgia as well. They’re typically only considered when someone doesn’t respond well to medications or can’t tolerate the drugs due to side effects.

Summary

The mandibular nerve is a division of the trigeminal nerve tasked with directing the movement of chewing muscles and providing sensations to the lower teeth, jaw, gums, chin, lower lip, and tongue.

The mandibular nerve is vulnerable to injury leading to nerve pain known as trigeminal neuralgia. Temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD) is a common cause of this, but medical or dental procedures and facial trauma can also damage the nerve.

7 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Akita K, Sakaguchi-Kua T, Fukino K, Ono T.Masticatory muscles and branches of mandibular nerve: positional relationships between various muscle bundles and their innervating branches.Anat Rec (Hoboken).2019 Apr;302(4):609-619. doi:10.1002/ar.23943MedlinePlus.Trigeminal neuralgia.Zakrzewska JM, Linskey ME.Trigeminal neuralgia.BMJ. 2014;348:g474. doi:10.1136/bmj.g474Tripathi M, Sadashiva N, Gupta A, et al.Please spare my teeth! Dental procedures and trigeminal neuralgia.Surg Neurol Int.2020;11:455. doi:10.25259/SNI_729_2020Pasala M, Park G, Kesserwani HN.A case of secondary trigeminal neuropathy due to local malignant invasion of the maxillary and mandibular nerves at the skull based: a case report with review of differential diagnosis.Cureus.2022 Apr;14(4):e24391. doi:10.7759/cureus.24391National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Trigeminal neuralgia fact sheet: how is trigeminal neuralgia treated?Sarikov R, Juodzbalys G.Inferior alveolar nerve injury after mandibular third molar extraction: a literature review.J Oral Maxillofac Res.2014 Oct-Dec;5(4):e1. doi:10.5037/jomr.2014.5401

7 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Akita K, Sakaguchi-Kua T, Fukino K, Ono T.Masticatory muscles and branches of mandibular nerve: positional relationships between various muscle bundles and their innervating branches.Anat Rec (Hoboken).2019 Apr;302(4):609-619. doi:10.1002/ar.23943MedlinePlus.Trigeminal neuralgia.Zakrzewska JM, Linskey ME.Trigeminal neuralgia.BMJ. 2014;348:g474. doi:10.1136/bmj.g474Tripathi M, Sadashiva N, Gupta A, et al.Please spare my teeth! Dental procedures and trigeminal neuralgia.Surg Neurol Int.2020;11:455. doi:10.25259/SNI_729_2020Pasala M, Park G, Kesserwani HN.A case of secondary trigeminal neuropathy due to local malignant invasion of the maxillary and mandibular nerves at the skull based: a case report with review of differential diagnosis.Cureus.2022 Apr;14(4):e24391. doi:10.7759/cureus.24391National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Trigeminal neuralgia fact sheet: how is trigeminal neuralgia treated?Sarikov R, Juodzbalys G.Inferior alveolar nerve injury after mandibular third molar extraction: a literature review.J Oral Maxillofac Res.2014 Oct-Dec;5(4):e1. doi:10.5037/jomr.2014.5401

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Akita K, Sakaguchi-Kua T, Fukino K, Ono T.Masticatory muscles and branches of mandibular nerve: positional relationships between various muscle bundles and their innervating branches.Anat Rec (Hoboken).2019 Apr;302(4):609-619. doi:10.1002/ar.23943MedlinePlus.Trigeminal neuralgia.Zakrzewska JM, Linskey ME.Trigeminal neuralgia.BMJ. 2014;348:g474. doi:10.1136/bmj.g474Tripathi M, Sadashiva N, Gupta A, et al.Please spare my teeth! Dental procedures and trigeminal neuralgia.Surg Neurol Int.2020;11:455. doi:10.25259/SNI_729_2020Pasala M, Park G, Kesserwani HN.A case of secondary trigeminal neuropathy due to local malignant invasion of the maxillary and mandibular nerves at the skull based: a case report with review of differential diagnosis.Cureus.2022 Apr;14(4):e24391. doi:10.7759/cureus.24391National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Trigeminal neuralgia fact sheet: how is trigeminal neuralgia treated?Sarikov R, Juodzbalys G.Inferior alveolar nerve injury after mandibular third molar extraction: a literature review.J Oral Maxillofac Res.2014 Oct-Dec;5(4):e1. doi:10.5037/jomr.2014.5401

Akita K, Sakaguchi-Kua T, Fukino K, Ono T.Masticatory muscles and branches of mandibular nerve: positional relationships between various muscle bundles and their innervating branches.Anat Rec (Hoboken).2019 Apr;302(4):609-619. doi:10.1002/ar.23943

MedlinePlus.Trigeminal neuralgia.

Zakrzewska JM, Linskey ME.Trigeminal neuralgia.BMJ. 2014;348:g474. doi:10.1136/bmj.g474

Tripathi M, Sadashiva N, Gupta A, et al.Please spare my teeth! Dental procedures and trigeminal neuralgia.Surg Neurol Int.2020;11:455. doi:10.25259/SNI_729_2020

Pasala M, Park G, Kesserwani HN.A case of secondary trigeminal neuropathy due to local malignant invasion of the maxillary and mandibular nerves at the skull based: a case report with review of differential diagnosis.Cureus.2022 Apr;14(4):e24391. doi:10.7759/cureus.24391

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Trigeminal neuralgia fact sheet: how is trigeminal neuralgia treated?

Sarikov R, Juodzbalys G.Inferior alveolar nerve injury after mandibular third molar extraction: a literature review.J Oral Maxillofac Res.2014 Oct-Dec;5(4):e1. doi:10.5037/jomr.2014.5401

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