Acute Pain of the Trigeminal Nerve Due to Amalgam in the Mandibular Canal: A Case Report

This is a rare case of amalgam allocation in an alveolar wound of an extracted third molar. During the extraction of a mandibular third molar to a 36-year-old woman, the adjacent mandibular second molar was broken. The dentist decided to put an amalgam filling to the mandibular second molar directly after the extraction and during the same appointment. The patient soon experienced an acute continuous pain of the whole facial region innervated from the trigeminal nerve. A panoramic radiograph of the patient after 3 days showed a large piece of amalgam near or inside the mandibular canal. Amalgam was removed from the mandibular canal surgically and, as a result, acute pain disappeared during the postoperative days. Restoration with amalgam should be avoided during a post-extraction time. Amalgam can produce toxic effects to the mandibular nerve, being transferred to the whole trigeminal nerve as well.