Bone Grafting for Dental Implants

Do I Have Enough Bone for Dental Implants?

After tooth extraction, bone tissue healing in the tooth socket becomes more predictable if a bone augmentation procedure is accomplished.  A special bone graft and regenerative barrier or membrane will be placed at the time of tooth extraction to help your body fill in the empty socket with bone. This step will maintain the width and volume of bone you will need for implant placement several months later.

There may be inadequate bone for implant placement if your tooth was removed many years ago and your bony ridge is extremely thin. In this case, bone graft material can be placed next to the thin bone and allowed to heal for up to six months. After the graft has successfully augmented the pre-existing bone, and confirmed by 3-D imaging, the ridge can be re-entered and the implant/s placed. Bone grafting is typically a relatively comfortable office procedure.

You may also need bone grafting if the sinus cavities in your upper jaw are very large, or very low, and extend into the tooth-bearing areas. This often occurs when teeth in the back of a person’s upper jaw have been removed many years before, and the amount of bone available for implant placement is limited. A “sinus grafting procedure” is then required. Most often, it is performed in the office with local anesthesia and perhaps sedation. During this procedure, the membrane that lines the sinus will be located and elevated. Bone will then be added to restore the bone height and ensure that dental implants of an adequate length can be placed. This procedure often can be performed at the time of implant placement.