Dental health or oral health is an essential part of your well-being. It’s the first thing someone will notice when you meet and smile at them. With the advancement of technology, dentists and periodontists have developed ideas on how to take care of your dental health. Bone grafting and periodontal surgeries have made it possible for patients with bone loss to get a dental implant.
What Is Bone Grafting?
Bone grafting is a surgical process to repair and rebuild damaged bones and strengthen the jawbone. While bone grafting is common to other body parts, there’s a rise in demand for a dental bone graft for dental implants. These two processes are essential, especially when there’s bone loss in the jaw.
The jaw bone may decrease due to tooth loss or jaw bone diseases. The bone may be transplanted from elsewhere and surgically fixed to the existing jaw bone. Sometimes a periodontist suggests a dental implant is when the bone loss affects nearby teeth and jaw gums. The process may sound scary, but bone grafting helps you achieve and regain your healthy and perfect smile.
Types of Bone Grafting
Types of bone grafting depend on the available materials. They include:
- Autograft. It is a bone graft sourced from your body, either from the hip, ribs, wrist, or back of the jaw. The process involves two surgical sites, where the bone is harvested and where the bone is placed. The advantage of using your own bone is the increased chances of successful fusion.
- Allograft. The process involves using bone tissues from another person (human donor). They are cleaned and sterilized to ensure the recipient is safe from infections and diseases.
- Xenograft. This type of bone grafting takes materials that come from an animal. It uses portions of animal bones, especially a cow.
- Alloplast. This is a type of bone grafting that uses artificial materials from naturally occurring bone-like minerals.
What Are the Procedures of Bone Grafting?
Want to know the procedures of bone grafting? It’s essential to understand the process and know what to expect.
The initial process of a dental bone graft procedure starts by meeting an oral surgeon or a periodontist like Dr. Richard Newhart. Dr. Newhart discusses the treatment plan with you and advises you on the different types of bone grafting and materials in each case. He examines the density of your jawbone using an X-ray machine to help make the perfect decision.
The bone grafting procedure mostly depends on the purpose of treatment and involves the following steps:
Anesthesia
To numb the site, Dr. Newhart uses a local anesthetic. If the bone is harvested from your own body (Autograft), you may need IV sedation, especially if you have a dental phobia.
Extraction and/or Bone Sourcing
If Dr. Newhart advises you on an autograph, he will source the bone from the desired location, for example, hip bone or wrist. If you need the tooth removed, Dr. Newhart will also perform the tooth extraction process simultaneously. Completing the two approaches together promotes faster healing.
Graft Insertion
Dr. Newhart must thoroughly clean the area to ensure that it’s free from infections. If an extraction is not needed, Dr. Newhart will incise the gum tissue to reveal the bone. He will then attach the bone grafting material to the exposed bone.
Stitching
To hold the area/tissues together, Dr. Newhart may use pins, wires, plates, titanium screws, or even cables. The process involves stitching the area once the grafting material is in place and the sutures are closed. Dr. Newhart will also stitch that area if the grafting bone was sourced from your body (autograft).
Recovery
It will take about six months and sometimes longer for the area to fully heal in most situations. After the site has fully recovered, you will be ready for a dental implant. Dr. Newhart will advise on how to take care of the area to avoid infections and diseases. In addition, if you want to go home the same day after you have undergone sedation or anesthesia, you should have someone help you get home to avoid driving.
Benefits of Bone Grafting
Most people often wonder why it’s vital to maintain jawbones in their original form. The most important reason is to restore the bone mass and structure to ensure that it does not develop dental diseases.
Once you have a tooth removed, the missing tooth causes the alveolar bone to waste away. With time it will affect you as you will not be able to chew food correctly. This could cause pain in the mouth and muscle dysfunctions.
Another benefit of bone grafting is improving the appearance and usefulness of dentures, implants, and crowns. These procedures require a sturdy jawbone to anchor.
Bone grafting also helps prevent future problems due to insufficient bone density in your dental area. In addition, the space after a tooth loss may cause the nearby teeth to shift, changing the facial bone structure.
What Is Periodontal Surgery?
Periodontal surgery is a category of surgery that deals with treatment around the teeth and gum line. It treats some gum diseases such as periodontitis and gingivitis. This surgery removes tartar and plaque from the tooth and under the gums that cause tooth loss. It allows Dr. Newhart to clean the affected tissues to prevent future infections.
Common Symptoms of Gum Diseases
There are several indicators or signs of gum disease:
- Swollen, red, or bleeding gums
- Pain while chewing
- loose teeth
- Deep pockets form on the gums and teeth
- Bad breath
Types Of Periodontal Surgery
There are different types of periodontal surgery, which include:
Gingival Flap Surgery
This procedure involves cleaning tartar buildup that has formed deep pockets around the teeth. It involves lifting the gum to clean the teeth and stitching the gums to improve the smile. The procedure is common for patients with periodontitis.
Mucogingival Surgery
A mucogingival surgery is a type of periodontal surgery to treat advanced periodontal gum disease. It’s especially necessary with exposed root surfaces. Mucogingival is further divided into several techniques.
Osseous Surgery
Like mucogingival surgery, osseous surgery is an advanced periodontal disease treatment that focuses on managing the destruction caused by periodontal gum disease to restore/reshape its initial form.
Gingivectomy
The process involves removing and cutting away excess gum tissue that has overgrown the teeth from the teeth.
Soft Tissue Grafts
If your jaw gums begin to recede, the surgeon can take existing tissue from your mouth and graft it to replace the missing gum.
If you live within Parkersburg, WV, and Marietta, OH, and you are in dire need of experts in oral surgery services, schedule an appointment with one of the best periodontists in the area.