Implant Bone Graft Procedures Paramus, NJ

How much bone do I have for dental implants?

If the socket walls are quite thick before tooth extraction, they will often spontaneously fill with bone in two to three months. This form of repair won’t happen as predictably, however, if the walls of your socket are really thin (as they are in your upper and lower front teeth). In these circumstances, a bone graft is often applied at the time of tooth extraction to assist your body in regenerating bone in the empty socket. This action keeps your bone at the breadth and volume you’ll need for implant placement a few months down the road.

If your tooth was removed many years ago and your bony ridge is very thin, there may not be enough bone for implant insertion. In this situation, a bone graft adjacent to the frail bone may be implanted and left to recover for up to six months. The ridge will be re-entered, and the implant will be inserted when the graft has bonded to your pre-existing bone. In most cases, bone grafting is a reasonably painless office operation. Your own bone is one of several viable options for bone transplantation.

If the sinus canals in your upper jaw are too wide or low and extend into the tooth-bearing regions, bone grafting may also be necessary. This often happens when a person’s upper jaw’s back teeth have been extracted over a long period of time, leaving little bone accessible for implant implantation. Thereafter, a “sinus grafting procedure” is needed. It is often carried out in the office under local anesthesia, maybe with sedation. The membrane lining the sinus will be found and lifted during this process. The height of the bone will then be restored with the addition of bone, allowing for the placement of dental implants that are long enough. Often, this surgery may be carried out simultaneously with implant insertion.