Dental Implants: Do I Need A Bone Grafting Procedure?

Bone grafting is a technique that adds volume and density to your jaw for dental restoration. Tooth extraction, gum disease, and trauma can cause jaw bone loss. Bone grafts reduce hard and soft tissue loss after tooth extraction.

Dentists may recommend a bone graft to support the jaw bone and prepare for dental implants. A bone graft is needed when the bone around the lost tooth is weak. This weak area must be strengthened to support the dental implant, existing teeth, and tissues.

Who Needs Bone Grafting?

The following common situations call for bone grafting:

• During a Sinus Lift:
  Dental implants take up the same amount of space as a real tooth root during a sinus lift. To ensure the implant is placed correctly, the sinus lining must be raised to a level that can be reached. In this area of oral surgery, tooth-bone grafts are almost always necessary.
• After a Tooth Extraction:
  When a tooth is pulled out, a hole forms in the jawbone. The neighboring bone may change shape as it resorbs, which could affect your soft tissues. Hence, you need grafting for dental restoration.
• Recovery from Periodontal Disease:
  If your gum tissue was affected by periodontitis in the past, you may need a bone transplant, even if you don’t want dental implants. Gum infections weaken the bone that makes up your alveolar ridge. A graft will help your smile stay strong.
• To Support Neighboring Teeth:
  As part of your bone augmentation treatment, healthy bone tissue may be transplanted to help stabilize the teeth next to yours. As time goes on, bone loss often gets worse. A dental bone graft can stop or delay further bone loss, which keeps you from losing your teeth in the future.
• Disqualifying Dental Implants
  People who wanted oral implants but didn’t meet the requirements used to be told that they couldn’t have them. Why? The reason was that there wasn’t enough bone to keep them alive. But bone grafts can change that.

Bone Grafting Method

Before Bone Grafting

Patient eligibility for bone graft surgery is determined beforehand. A dental exam inspects the patient’s teeth, gums, and jaw, and dental X-rays detect whether and how much bone loss exists. Then, the dentist and the patient discuss and finalize the personalized treatment plan.

During Bone Grafting

Bone graft surgery rebuilds diseased bones with grafted bone. Bone transplant surgery takes several forms based on the scenario and bone location. But generally, these steps are involved during dental restoration:

• Anesthesia: To reduce pain and discomfort, the patient will get a local anesthetic before surgery. A patient with excessive anxiety may need inhaled, oral, or IV sedation. Patient comfort is paramount.
• Graft preparation: Your periodontist will cut the affected bone and connect the teeth. Next, he will prepare the bone graft. The patient’s body tissue, a donor, or synthetic material can be used as a graft.
• Graft placement: The periodontist will graft the damaged or diseased bone. Secure the graft with screws, wires, or pins. After placing the bone graft, he will sew or staple the incision.

After Bone Grafting

After bone transplant surgery for dental restoration, swelling, bruising, and soreness should subside in a few days. Local anesthesia or light sedation is used for the simple healing process. After surgery, a minor gum incision to install the graft may cause gum pain.

Patients may be instructed to pack gauze around the incision and change the dressing. Patients must take antibiotics and painkillers as indicated. The recovery period varies by instance, but following post-operative advice will help improve healing and prevent complications.

Conclusion

Your dental surgery can be simple or complex, depending on your demands and the dental bone grafts employed. If your dental bone graft is part of a more complicated surgery, your dentist may use local anesthetic, sedation, or general anesthesia to keep you comfortable.