Dental Bone Graft Services
Welcome to our comprehensive guide on dental implant bone and gum grafts. This has been written by our implant and cosmetic dentist to provide you with the most accurate information about this subject.
If you want to receive one or more dental implants then it is a prerequisite that your jaw has enough quality bone material around the implant site. Without this, it will not be possible to securely fit a dental implant into your jaw. In this case, you may need to receive a dental bone graft to increase the amount of operational bone present in your jaw before receiving your implants.
Get in touch with our expert dental surgeons for a consultation:
Bone Graft Procedures
Socket Preservation and Guided Bone Regeneration (GBR): Once a tooth root has been missing for a period of time the bone resorbs leaving insufficient bone volume for successful implant placement. In such cases a Socket Preservation or GBR is carried out to increase the bone volume to anchor an implant. Depending on the size of the bone defect, various methods exit to build a framework for new bone to be developed. PTFE and Titanium meshes are used for larger defects, and are left in place for 9-12 months before removing the mesh and placing implant fixtures. Smaller defects may be managed with soft collagen meshes that can be synthetic or xenograft (animal derived). This may be via Bovine and Porcine derived biomaterial. If you prefer a synthetic material, please let your dentist know.
Connective/Soft Tissue Graft: A soft/connective tissue graft covers an area of exposed tooth or implant surface with either grafted oral tissue or a biomaterial. The covering of these areas increases the gum thickness and quality, providing better aesthetics and cleanability of the areas around the implant teeth. The graft may be taken from the roof the mouth (hard palate) or top right or left side of the teeth. These areas may feel painful for several days and will naturally heal over a period of weeks.
Sinus Lift: The sinus cavities are in the regions of the upper molars and premolars whose roots are supported by the bone in the floor of the sinus cavities. Once a tooth root has been missing for a period of time, the bone resorbs, leaving insufficient bone volume for successful implant placement. In such cases, a sinus lift is carried out to increase the volume to anchor an implant. There are two types of sinus lift; window and osteotome methods. You may be referred to a specialist oral surgeon or implantologist for this procedure.
Block Bone Graft: In some cases of severe bone loss a graft of bone harvested from the patient is required to restore the region affected. This is usually allowed to heal over a 6 month period prior to initiating any implant fixture placement. You may be referred to a specialist oral surgeon or implantologist for this procedure.
Implant treatment may entail a combination of the above insertion methods and the time required to place them will depend on the number being inserted and their position in the mouth. Every effort will be made to keep the time to a minimum whilst not compromising the final result.
Why might I need a bone graft?
There are many reasons why you might need a bone graft to support dental implants. Some of these reasons may be a result of your dental history, others may be hereditary conditions.
For example, if you have previously had a tooth removed then it is likely that you will have lost some of the bone content around the socket where that tooth once was. This is completely normal and nothing to worry about as it happens to everyone unless the socket is specifically preserved.
Other reasons could be because of your own specific genetics. Everyone has slightly different positioning of their sinuses in relation to the jaw around it and some people may need a bone graft to increase the bone density of their upper jaw as a result.
Finally, any other previous dental conditions or injuries could have resulted in damage to the bone quality in your jaw and therefore necessitate a bone graft to be able to support dental implants.
Bone graft eligibility
In order to be eligible for a dental bone graft you must have otherwise good oral health but with less than 2mm of available bone surrounding the planned dental implant location.
This lack of bone would make it impossible for a dental implant to be securely fitted and bond with the jaw bone. Your dentist will be able to perform an x-ray and examine the results to come up with your ideal treatment plan and what type of bone graft will be best for you.
Following your bone graft procedure, your bone must be fully healed and regenerated in order to be eligible for dental implants. This means that there must be sufficient blood flow to the treated area, there must be no stress on the soft tissue, and osteoblasts (cells that secrete bone) must be present.
Types of bone graft
There are a variety of dental bone graft procedures that can be performed to give you the best results.
Autogenous bone grafts, also known as autografts, involve the transplantation of bone from areas of your body such as your mouth or your hip to be used for your bone graft. Because this bone comes from your own body, it has the highest chance of being accepted by your body without complications.
Alloggrafts involve donor bone from a person other than yourself. Bovine bone may also be used in xenografts. If this is the case, the bone is thoroughly cleaned and deproteinised to make it compatible for your body.
Finally, there are also bone grafts that use artificial/synthetic bone rather than organic bone material. Your dentist will be able to talk you through all available options so that you can decide on a solution that works for you and your dental health.
Book Your Free E-Consultation Today
FAQ's
A bone graft is a method to reform, improve, augment and increase the volume of lost bone tissue. It is used in order to safely place an implant and/or to optimise dental aesthetics where implant bone has been lost or has receded.
If you have lost teeth for many years, suffered trauma or from periodontal (gum) disease, or have medical conditions that affect your bone, this can create a loss or reduced bone support. In these instances, a bone graft may be necessary in order to improve the available bone tissue.
A xenograft is bone chippings or granules that are prepared from a source that is non-Human. In dentistry, this is typically Bovine (Cow) or Porcine (Pig) in origin. It is important to understand that the xenograft is prepared, disinfected and desiccated in order to be used safely in humans. It is designed to act as a scaffolding for the body to build further bone over a period of months. The xenograft itself remains for many years, however it is not the bone that we rely on to fix the implant to.
An allograft is bone chippings or granules that are sourced from a deceased human source. It is important to note that due to the bone matter being dehydrated, processed and disinfected it does not present an issue when using it in a live patient.
Autogenous grafts are bone matter taken from an alternate site or sites in the same individual. This is performed regularly in dental implant placement appointments, as autogenous bone is considered to have bone rebuilding properties that xenografts and allografts do not.
The limitation is that autogenous grafts are typically small and cannot be used for large defects.
Bone loss can create a lack of strong gum tissue to adhere to the dental implant. If this is the case, a gum graft from the roof of the mouth (hard palate) can be helpful to improve the quality and aesthetics of the gum around an implant. This can improve the aesthetic success as well as the long term health around the implant.
VIRTUAL CONSULTATION