Arteriographic assessment of patency of the inferior alveolar artery and its relevance to alveolar atrophy.

Patency of the inferior alveolar artery was investigated on 84 patients who had undergone selective external carotid angiography with digital subtraction. Patency of the artery was lost earlier in males than females, but the presence or absence of teeth did not appear to affect the outcome. The artery was visualized less well on patients with medical conditions that may predispose to early or excessive atherosclerotic disease.