Bone Grafting
What is Bone Grafting?
After a tooth or teeth are lost due to cavities, periodontal disease, or trauma, the jawbone begins to shrink or resorb. This natural process often leaves an area where the quality and/or quantity of bone is not suitable to place implants. In these circumstances, additional treatment is usually required prior to the placement of dental implants.
Thanks to modern medicine, we now have the ability to grow bone and reconstruct bony defects of the jaws to make dental implants an option in most conditions. Bone grafting is divided into two categories: Minor bone grafting and major bone grafting.
Minor Bone Grafting
Minor bone grafting uses either bone from a tissue bank and/or bone from your own jawbone. Your surgeon can help you determine which type of bone is the best for your situation.
Minor bone grafting is usually done for several reasons:
- Extraction Socket Preservation--This procedure is done when a tooth is extracted and an implant cannot be placed at the same time. The extraction socket is filled up with bone and a barrier membrane is placed over it. This allows the extraction socket to heal quicker so that a dental implant may be placed.
- In Conjunction with Dental Implant Placement--This type of bone grafting is required when an implant site is suitable for implant placement. However, for a better long-term prognosis and to provide more structural support, a little more bone will may be beneficial.
Major Bone Grafting
Major bone grafting is used to reconstruct larger defects of the jawbone. This type of grafting cannot usually be performed in conjunction with dental implant placement. These defects usually arise due to several factors: Complex tooth extractions, trauma, severe periodontal disease, enlarged maxillary sinuses, tumor surgery, or congenital defects. These larger defects require the use of the patient's own bone for reconstruction. The most common areas for harvesting bone for major bone grafting are your jawbone, hip, or tibia. Sometimes this type of bone grafting can be performed in our office, but most of the time, it will require an operating room setting.
***Information referenced from www.aaoms.org
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