Bone Grafting Procedures

Over time, the jawbone that once held teeth atrophies or is reabsorbed. This often leaves an environment in which there is inadequate quality and quantity of bone for dental implant placement.  Dr. Thurgood uses the latest advances in bone grafting techniques to allow patients who were previously poor candidates for implant restoration many new options.  Bone grafting can allow implant placement into sites with inadequate bone due to previous extractions, gum disease or injuries.

Minor Grafting

In many cases, such as after dental extraction, or in the area of a longstanding single missing tooth, we can use an allograft material (bottled bone) to graft sites for dental implant placement. This bone is prepared from cadavers and used to promote replacement of the patients own bone into the grafted site. It is very safe as the bone is de-mineralized, freeze-dried and irradiated. Synthetic materials like various peptides and bone morphogenic proteins can also be used to stimulate bone formation.

These surgeries are performed as an out-patient procedure in our office under local anesthesia, IV sedation or general anesthesia.

Sinus lift procedure

The sinus graft makes it possible for many patients to have dental implants when years ago there was no other option other than wearing loose dentures.

The maxillary sinuses are behind your cheeks and on top of the upper teeth. The bone in the maxilla (top jaw) is already of poorer quality than the mandible.  Sinuses are air-filled cavities that have a thin lining that produces mucous. Over time, especially when teeth are missing, the sinus cavity enlarges and makes stable and predictable implant placement impossible.

In cases like this, a sinus graft or sinus lift is required. The dental implant surgeon enters the sinus then lifts sinus membrane upward and donor bone is inserted into the floor of the sinus. After several months of healing, the bone becomes part of the patient’s jaw and dental implants can be inserted in this new sinus bone.

Occasionally, if enough bone between the upper jaw ridge and the bottom of the sinus is available to stabilize the implant well, sinus augmentations and implant placement can be performed at the same time. Otherwise, the sinus lift/graft will have to be performed first, then the graft will have to mature for several months prior to implant placement. Implants placed into bone grafted maxillas (top jaws) typically take 4-6 months of healing time before they can be restored with artificial teeth.  This may mean that entire treatment time can approach 9-12 months.

Major Bone Grafting

The bone is either obtained from a tissue bank or your own bone is taken from the jaw, hip or tibia (below the knee.) Sinus bone grafts are also performed to replace bone in the posterior upper jaw.

Major bone grafts are typically performed to repair larger defects of the jaws. These defects may arise as a result of traumatic injuries, pathology, or congenital defects. Large defects are repaired using the patient’s own bone that is harvested from a number of different sites depending on the size of the defect. The skull (cranium), hip (iliac crest), and ribs are common donor sites. These procedures are routinely performed in an operating room and require a hospital stay.