Dental implant surgery is one of the most integral aspects of periodontal treatment, allowing patients who may have lost their permanent (adult) teeth a chance to restore and rejuvenate their smile. However, in order to successfully place an oral implant, patients must have enough bone tissue to ensure a strong, secure connection between the implant and the patient’s jaw. For those individuals who may not have enough bone tissue remaining, often following a severe periodontal episode, bone augmentation is a critical step in ensuring the jaw is ready to successfully accept the implant and restore the patient’s dental structure.
What is Bone Augmentation?
Bone augmentation is a minimally invasive form of a bone graft, that allows patients who may not have enough bone matter remaining in a specific area, to restore their mouth’s bone tissue and support a newly added oral implant.
In order to perform a success bone augmentation procedure, we will need to use a specialized bone graft. This bone graft contains important proteins and collagen in order to encourage bone growth. Once the graft affixes to the natural bone matter within your mouth, it will begin to stimulate the growth of new bone tissue, and eventually, over approximately 3 to 9 months, depending on the amount of bone tissue needed, it will replace the graft material with actual bone tissue. After this process, there will be sufficient bone matter to hold a new dental implant.
The procedure isperformed using a relatively simple process, including the following steps:
- Firstly, in order to numb the area in which the graft will be placed, patients will be given a local anesthetic.
- Once the area is numbed, we will cut through the gum tissue in order to expose a bit more of the bone tissue hidden beneath.
- The surgeon will then affix the bone graft material to the existing bone within the area of the mouth.
What is a Bone Graft Made From?
Depending on the specifics of your condition, and the discretion of the surgeon at the time, the bone graft may be obtained from a number of different sources. Often, a bone graft is made from harvested bone tissue from another area of the patient’s body, including the shins, hips, and even parts of the face like the chin. In some instances, the bone graft may also be taken from a cadaver or even an animal source.
Rather than use a natural source, in some cases, a synthetic option known as an alloplast is available as well.
Over the course of the next several months, the bone tissue will slowly grow. In this period of time, Dr. Malakov may recommend the use of certain oral devices and other helpful tips to help make the process more effective, while mitigating any chances of infection, injury, or trauma. For more information on the bone augmentation process, be sure to contact us today.
