The "ART" mandibular nerve block: a new approach to accomplishing regional anesthesia.

A new technique involving the use of a local block to anesthetize the inferior alveolar nerve (V3), a branch of the mandibular division of the trigeminal or fifth cranial nerve, is described. Clinicians fail to administer a successful mandibular block in as many as 15 per cent of all cases. This paper reviews and outlines some of the more common reasons for this failure, and how to avoid them. A short description of other techniques are presented, some of which should be reserved for isolated cases and not used on a routine basis. By avoiding or eliminating the reasons for mandibular block failure, and using the new block described in this paper, clinicians should be able to reduce the failure rate to much lower levels.