Tooth Bone Loss

Alveolar bone and the periodontal ligaments can be destroyed by periodontal disease or because of trauma. Tooth extraction bone loss can occur if the bony sockets around your teeth become damaged during tooth removal.

When you first see our implant dentist, we will assess your dental health care, including your jawbone. Digital dental x-rays provide 2-D images of your jawbone condition, but we can visualize it more fully with a cone beam CT scan, which gives 3-D images. The information allows us to evaluate your jaws closely, and to tell if we can successfully insert dental implants.
Sometimes, we can locate dental implants to use available bone effectively, potentially reducing the need for bone grafting. Other times, bone grafting can help to improve not only the success of implant treatment but also overall aesthetics. When you have the correct amount of jawbone, it provides essential support for your cheeks and lips, restoring the correct facial dimensions between your upper and lower jaw.

Your cone beam CT scan allows us to see which areas need more bone, which is placed during a short surgical procedure. The dentist will make a small incision into the gum to expose the bone so they can place the bone grafting material precisely.

Afterward, the bone graft will need time to heal. Often the bone graft creates a scaffold that encourages your body to produce new bone. This ‘scaffold’ is eventually replaced with your bone. If your tooth bone loss is minimal, we can sometimes replace this bone when we place the implant, so only a single surgical procedure is needed. The technique used depends on where the bone is needed. Bone grafting techniques include:

• Socket preservation, where additional bone is placed into the empty socket immediately after tooth removal.
• Ridge augmentation builds up the bony ridge that supported your natural teeth and can restore its correct height and width.
• Sinus augmentation ‘lifts’ the membrane between your sinus cavities and jawbone, just above your upper back teeth, creating a space that is filled with bone grafting material.

The materials used to rebuild tooth bone loss are very safe and high quality. Sometimes we will use a patient’s bone that we take from another site in their body, often from the jaw. Other times the bone graft is made from donor bone that is either bovine or human. Donor bone is rigorously tested and sterilized to ensure it is safe for use. Artificial bone is frequently used and contains growth factors that help to encourage new bone growth, so it is extremely effective.