Local anaesthetics in dentistry: A series

Abstract

Failure in local anaesthesia in dentistry is not uncommon with failure rates ranging approximately between 15% and 30%, especially for the inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB). In fact of all the nerve blocks which may be administered in the human body the IANB has the highest failure rate (Malamed, 2012). Therefore, the aim of this series of articles is the discuss some of the causes of failure in local anaesthesia and make recommendations so as to minimize the experience. Current trends like computer controlled local anaesthetic delivery, reversal of soft tissue anaesthesia for patient comfort and “needle free” anaesthesia will be discussed.