Bone Grafting​​

Reasons You Might Need Bone Grafting

If you don’t have enough healthy bones in your mouth that can support a dental implant, bone grafting can rectify the issue. There could be a few reasons your natural bones might not be strong enough:

• An injury or trauma
• Empty space after a tooth extraction
• Empty space after a lost tooth
• Gum disease
• Developmental defects

Bone grafting is common in patients who need dental implants. Even if you lose a tooth one day and visit us the next, there’s a chance a bone graft may be necessary. The longer you wait, the more bone loss occurs and the higher the chances you’ll need bone grafting.

Types of Bone Grafts

There are four main types of bone grafts:

• Socket grafts, the most common, involve us placing bone from a human donor directly into the socket. This type of graft comes with the least amount of post-procedure pain.
• Lateral ridge preservation grafts use human donor bones to increase the width of the jawbone when necessary.
• Block bone grafts are used when you have a big jawbone defect. For block bone grafts, we use a small block of bone from the back of your jawbone.
• A sinus lift procedure is used when you need an implant in the upper jaw.

After a Bone Graft

One of the best parts of a bone grafting procedure is the lack of pain afterward. We will give you antibiotics you’ll need to take as directed, which will prevent infection and ensure a successful procedure. If you’re in the small minority of people who experience some pain following the procedure, over-the-counter pain medication should suffice, but please let us know if you experience severe or lasting pain.

Once your bone graft fully fuses, you’ll be ready for your dental implants. The length of time it takes to fuse varies. For most patients, it will take 4-6 months, but it may be more or less time for you. We’ll evaluate the status of your bone grafts with regular checkups.