Bone grafting is an essential procedure before fitting dental implants for people with an insufficient jawbone to hold the implants. Dental implant placement is directly into the jawbone, so you need enough bone to hold your implants in place for a successful procedure. You won’t have a solid base for dental implants without enough jawbone.

What is a bone graft?

A bone graft procedure is surgery for replacing bone surrounding a tooth root, giving you enough natural jawbone to hold a dental implant. Your dentist can take the material for the bone graft from another part of the jaw or another body part. In some cases, the dentist will use a synthetic material.

Unlike other body tissues, the bones regenerate under the right conditions. With a graft, bone regeneration can occur, helping to hold existing teeth and implants. Over time, your surrounding bone will grow and fuse with the implant material.

When the site surrounding the bone graft heals, you can have the surgery to place the implant.

When is a bone graft necessary?

An initial consultation before the dental implant procedure is important. The assessment during this consultation will help the dentist advise you if you need a bone graft. People have insufficient bone to hold implants for several reasons, and you may need a bone graft for any of these reasons.

• You extracted a tooth a while back. The gap from the extracted tooth may affect the adjacent teeth, and bone deterioration may occur
• You have unstable or loose teeth or experience gum disease. Gum disease breaks down the bone tissues and gums
• You had a mouth injury that impacted your bone, causing bone loss
• You had mouth infections. These infections may lead to bone loss

Bone graft procedure

You can undergo bone grafting at a local dental practice under local anaesthesia, but your dentist may administer a sedative if you have dental anxiety.

If you need a large graft, your dental professional may surgically graft the bone from another body part, like your shin or hip. In this case, a general anaesthetic is necessary, and the procedure will be in a hospital.

Your surgeon or dentist will lift your gum tissue from the affected area, place the bone graft, secure it, and stitch your gum over the graft. This procedure takes about 60 – 90 minutes.

Bone grafting may seem complicated, but it is a common procedure, and your dental professional will inform you of the process and address your concerns.

The dentist will remove your stitches after a week. Depending on the grafting procedure, it usually takes 3 – 9 months for the graft to grow into the natural bone (osseointegration). After osseointegration occurs, you can fit the implants.

How can I care for my bone graft?

After the bone graft procedure, your surgeon will inform you how to care for the graft. The success rate for bone graft procedures is high when carried out by an experienced dental professional. Adhering to the aftercare instruction will also reduce the risk of graft failure.

Like other surgical procedures, getting a bone graft will cause some discomfort, but the pain won’t isn’t more than a tooth extraction procedure. Ibuprofen and paracetamol can help manage the pain, but your dentist may prescribe anti-inflammatories and antibiotics.

Materials for a dental bone graft

Your dentist can use bone material from these sources.

• Your bone, usually from your shin, hip or another body part
• Artificial bone made in the lab
• Bone from animal biomaterial

What is the cost of dental bone graft?

Bone Graft Cost depend on your needs. Your dental professional will thoroughly access your dental health during your initial consultation to determine the exact cost of your bone graft procedure. You can also ask questions concerning the procedure during your consultation.

What are the methods for bone grafting?

Different methods for bone grafting are available. They include:

• Onlay bone graft
  Your dentist might recommend this method if you lost your tooth a long ago. In this method, the dental professional will place the bone graft on top or the sides of your existing bone. You will wait a few months before placing the implants to allow the bone to fuse with the graft.
• Block bone graft
  This procedure involves fitting small blocks of bone into the weak area and securing the grafts with bone screws. When the site heals, your dentist will remove the screws and place the implants.
• Particulate bone graft
  In this technique, the dentist will use small spongy particles and compact bone matter to allow quick graft integration with your existing jawbone.

What are the types of bone grafts?

Several types of bone grafts are available. They include:

• Socket preservation
  If you want to remove a tooth before placing an implant, the dental professional will fill the socket remaining after extraction using graft material. This prevents loss of thickness in the jawbone. Without socket preservation after tooth extraction, the underlying bone will degenerate within a few weeks, affecting your appearance, and another procedure may be necessary for the future.
• Guided bone regeneration
  The dental professional will make a space between the jawbone and gum, then place a collagen membrane along the gum to ensure your gum tissue doesn’t grow into the space from a missing tooth. The dental surgeon will place small bone graft particles in the space to aid new bone growth.
  Collagen is a naturally-occurring substance, and your body can absorb the collagen membrane within three months.
• Black bone graft
  A black bone graft is necessary to restore the natural jaw shape following severe bone loss. The bone graft will likely be from another part of your jaw.
• Ridge preservation
  The alveolar ridge is a section of the jaw containing the sockets holding the tooth root. If the ridge becomes narrow, it splits, but your dental surgeon can place a graft in it to widen the gap. You can have an implant inserted into the new ridge.
  You can have a bone grafting procedure at Dental Implants Clinic Turkey. Visit our clinic today or contact us to schedule a consultation for bone grafting.