Wisdom Tooth Nerve Damage

Two Nerves, Two Different Injuries

Lower third molars (wisdom teeth) often sit near the roots of two nerves that serve very different functions:

• The lingual nerve runs along the inner surface of the jawbone, close to where a surgeon works during extraction. An injury here can cause numbness, altered sensation, or lost taste on one side of the tongue.
• The inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) runs through the jawbone itself, near the roots of impacted lower wisdom teeth. An injury here causes numbness in the lower lip, chin, and lower teeth on the affected side.

How These Injuries Happen

Some risk of nerve injury exists with any lower wisdom tooth extraction, particularly when the tooth is impacted and its roots are close to a nerve. Injury becomes more likely to reflect negligence when:

• Pre-operative imaging didn't assess how close the roots were to the nerve canal, or that imaging wasn't reviewed carefully.
• A surgical instrument (an elevator or handpiece) was used in a way that directly traumatized the nerve bundle.
• A case with a high-risk anatomy (roots wrapping around or crossing the canal) wasn't referred to an oral surgeon, or a less invasive option like coronectomy (removing the crown but leaving the root to avoid the nerve) wasn't considered when it may have been appropriate.

What to Expect for Recovery

Many lingual and IAN injuries from wisdom tooth extraction improve within weeks as swelling resolves. Persistent numbness beyond three months is less likely to fully resolve on its own, and some injuries — particularly where the nerve was more significantly damaged — are permanent. A specialist can assess the type and severity of the injury and discuss whether microsurgical repair is an option, which is generally more effective the sooner it's pursued.

Not sure whether what you're feeling is normal post-surgical recovery or something more serious? Our numbness after dental work page walks through typical timelines. For the broader picture on nerve anatomy and injury types, see dental nerve damage.