Greater palatine nerve neuropraxia after laryngeal mask insertion: A rare occurrence

Jyoti Garg1, Geoffrey Haw Chieh Liew2, Shariq Ali Khan2

  • 1Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Sengkang General Hospital, Singapore.

With the more frequent use of the laryngeal mask airway (LMA) over endotracheal tubes for general anaesthesia, various cranial nerve injuries have been reported recently. We report a rare occurrence of greater palatine nerve (GPN) palsy subsequent to the use of LMA Supreme™ in a young female scheduled for hand surgery. Although the exact mechanism of a nerve injury is still a matter of further research, we postulate pressure neuropraxia of GPN as a causative factor in the development of numbness over the hard palate after the removal of LMA in the post operative period.

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