Efficacy of low-level laser therapy and microsurgery on neurosensory recovery following inferior alveolar and lingual nerve injuries: A systematic review

Purpose

This systematic review evaluates the relative effectiveness of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) and microsurgery for neurosensory recovery following sustained iatrogenic injuries to the inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) and lingual nerve (LN) more than 6 months in Oral and Maxillofacial surgery procedures.

Methods

Six articles were included. The mean age of microsurgery studies was 41.5 years and that of LLLT studies was 31.5 with female predominance in all studies. The majority of the included studies have been based on both subjective and objective assessments for neurosensory, two investigating microsurgery and four investigating LLLT following a Six-month post-IAN and LN injury.

Results

Each modality demonstrated positive outcomes in both subjective and objective assessments of neurosensory function. Notably, LLLT exhibited efficacy even when employed beyond a six-month interval following the initial injury. Early intervention is generally recommended, particularly for microsurgical approaches.

Conclusion

LLLT shows exciting promise as a minimally invasive approach for neurosensory rehabilitation even after six months of injury, while microsurgery studies revealed an improvement and the recommendation for early intervention post-nerve injury, the potential of LLLT and optimize its use for neurosensory rehabilitation, additional randomized controlled trials with larger sample sizes, longer follow-up periods, and blinding protocols are necessary.