OBJECTIVE: Experimental lesions in the inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) are used for the study of peripheral and central alterations. The objective of our study was to contribute to a more precise description of the approach to the IAN and creating a lesion. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-six males of Wistar laboratory rats were used for the study. The animals were divided into three groups: control group (6 rats), experimental group (12 rats - a part of the bone above the mandibular canal was removed under general anaesthesia using extraoral approach, after exposing a part of the IAN, the nerve was excised in a length of 3 mm), and a sham group (8 rats - the nerve was only dissected but not transected). Persisting denervation was verified using surgical revision and histological and immunohistochemical analysis after the observation period (4 weeks). RESULTS: No evidence of re-innervation after 4 weeks. We found no statistically significant differences in mean weight gains between individual groups during the observation period. CONCLUSION: The described technique used in the study is one of the possible ways to create a nerve lesion at the site of the main trunk of the nerve. At the same time, the study provides a more precise description of the anatomical situation and approach to the IAN in the mandibular canal.