The use of the 80 reading as a criterion for pulpal anesthesia was based on the studies of Dreven et al and Certosimo and Archer. These studies showed that no patient response to an 80 reading ensured pulpal anesthesia in vital asymptomatic teeth. Additionally, Certosimo and Archer demonstrated that EPT readings less than 80 resulted [...]

Twenty-three males and 7 females from age 19 to 43 years (average 24 years) participated in this study. One hundred percent of the subjects had subjective lip and tongue anesthesia with the IAN blocks. The discomfort ratings of solution deposition for the IAN blocks are presented in Table 1. There were no significant differences (P [...]

Thirty adult subjects participated in this study. The subjects were in good health and were not taking any medications that would alter pain perception. The Ohio State University Human Subjects Review Committee approved the study, and written informed consent was obtained from each subject.

The inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) block is the most frequently used injection technique for achieving local anesthesia for mandibular restorative and surgical procedures. However, the IAN block does not always result in successful pulpal anesthesia. Failure rates of 8 to 67% have been reported in experimental studies. Clinical studies in endodontics have found failure with [...]