Abstract
The removal of impacted maxillary third molars is one of the most common procedures performed in oral and maxillofacial surgery units with low rates of complications and morbidity. A few cases of accidental displacement of third molars into adjacent anatomical spaces, such as the infratemporal fossa, the pterygomandibular space, the maxillary sinus, buccal space, or the lateral pharyngeal space, during surgical interventions have been reported. In this paper, a case of a maxillary third molar accidentally displaced into the pterygopalatine fossa is presented, and the removal of the tooth via intraoral approach is described.
Highlights
The removal of impacted maxillary third molars is one of the most common procedures performed in oral and maxillofacial surgery units with low rates of complications and morbidity [1,2,3]
A few cases of accidental displacement of molars into adjacent anatomical spaces, such as the infratemporal fossa, the pterygomandibular space, the maxillary sinus, the buccal space, or the lateral pharyngeal space, during surgical interventions have been reported [3, 5, 6]. This is the first reported case of maxillary third molar displaced into pterygopalatine fossa
Displacement of maxillary third molars into the neighbouring anatomic spaces is associated with insufficient clinical and radiographic examination, lack of basic principles of surgery such as poor anatomic knowledge, inadequate flap, decreased visibility, and excessive or uncontrolled force applied during extraction [3,4,5,6]
Summary
The removal of impacted maxillary third molars is one of the most common procedures performed in oral and maxillofacial surgery units with low rates of complications and morbidity [1,2,3]. A few cases of accidental displacement of molars into adjacent anatomical spaces, such as the infratemporal fossa, the pterygomandibular space, the maxillary sinus, the buccal space, or the lateral pharyngeal space, during surgical interventions have been reported [3, 5, 6]. This is the first reported case of maxillary third molar displaced into pterygopalatine fossa. Upon the reflection of the flap the pathway of the displaced third molar has been revealed as the posterior aspect of maxillary sinus area was open to site. Extending through the posterior wall of maxillary sinus and with careful exploring the tooth was reached and exposed with a straight elevator
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