Our dentist may recommend bone grafting if your jawbone cannot support a restoration such as a dental implant. This helps ensure that the restoration of your smile is successful. Call our office today at 330-668-9830 to schedule an appointment with Dr. Disha Pennington and learn more about bone grafting in Copley, Ohio.
What is a bone graft?
In dentistry, a bone graft refers to a procedure that increases the density and volume of the natural jawbone tissue. To perform this treatment, additional bone is added to the area of deficiency. Bone graft materials commonly used can include your own extracted tooth. Your extracted tooth can be ground down and used as graft material. Other commonly used materials include cadaver bone from a bone bank, bovine bone and synthetic bone. The selection of graft material is based on the location and severity of the bone loss.
Bone Grafts at the Time of Extraction
We frequently recommend bone grafts at the same time as tooth extraction especially if a dental implant has been chosen as a replacement option. This is referred to as a socket or ridge preservation graft, and it is placed directly into the socket immediately after tooth removal. The bone grafting material keeps the bony walls from caving in, providing a firm solid foundation for a dental implant in the future. Placing the graft does not cause any additional discomfort during an extraction, as the site is already accessed for the tooth removal. In most cases, the site will need to heal for approximately three to six months before an implant can be placed.
In some cases, due to severe inflammation at the extraction site, a low maxillary sinus, extensive pre-existing bone loss and/or diseased tissue at the extraction site, it is not possible to provide enough bone volume for implant placement with this procedure alone. In these circumstances additional bone grafting may be required either at the time of implant placement, or as a staged procedure prior to implant placement.