Introduction: Inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) injury is among the most common complications associated with orthognathic surgery. Managing these injuries poses significant challenges due to the lack of a standardized treatment protocol. This study aimed to systematically review the literature on the efficacy of blood products and photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy for
neurosensory recovery in patients with IAN injuries after orthognathic surgery.
Methods: This systematic review involved a comprehensive search of Scopus, Embase, and PubMed databases, as well as the initial 100 search results from Google Scholar, to identify relevant articles published between 2015 and 2024. The articles were selected using defined eligibility criteria.
Results: The research paper reviewed 170 articles, ultimately including 14 studies that focused on IAN injury related to surgical procedures such as genioplasty, sagittal split mandibular ramus osteotomy (SSRO), and bilateral sagittal split osteotomy (BSSO). Among these studies, five assessed the effectiveness of various blood products—specifically platelet-rich fibrin (PRF),
leukocyte-rich PRF (L-PRF), advanced PRF (A-PRF), and concentrated growth factor (CGF)—all of which were found to alleviate hypoesthesia. Nine studies evaluated the efficacy of PBM, primarily utilizing wavelengths of 810 and 808 nm over 5 to 10 sessions. PBM also successfully enhanced the recovery of IAN. Moreover, one article highlighted the synergistic effect of using L-PRF in conjunction with PBM.
Conclusion: It appears that neurosensory recovery following IAN injury due to orthognathic surgery may be enhanced by blood-derived products such as PRF, CGF, A-PRF, and L-PRF, which release growth factors that facilitate tissue repair. Additionally, PBM further supports recovery by reducing inflammation in the initial weeks and stimulating cellular metabolism to promote regeneration in the subsequent weeks.