A dental implant is a safe and long-term solution to the loss of a tooth. What happens with dental implants is that an artificial tooth root is inserted into the jaw to hold a replacement tooth or bridge in place. It may be necessary, in some cases, to perform bone grafting as part of the process while inserting a dental implant. Bone grafting is a procedure that helps to regenerate and replace lost bone, to restore the patient’s correct facial counter.

What Are Dental Implants?

Dental implants are artificial teeth made of high-grade ceramic to look and feel as natural as real teeth. They function exactly the way natural teeth do. A dental implant can help save other teeth in the jaw, as they stand independent and don’t depend on their neighbours for support.

About Bone Grafting For Dental Implants

The surgery for dental implants is performed in several stages as follows:

1. First, the damaged tooth is removed and the wound allowed to heal.
2. Then the jaw is scanned to ensure there’s sufficient bone to support a dental implant. If the prognosis is that the dental implant might require bone grafting, the jawbone is prepared for bone grafting surgery.

Historically, bone would be removed from a different part of the patient’s body, or from a different part of the jawbone itself. This is not necessary nowadays, because today periodontists can be processed bone harvested from animals. These bone grafts are sterilized to remove all organic material, and at the time of the surgery, only comprise the mineral content of natural bone. Usually cow bone is used in place of human bone in bone grafting surgery. By using animal bone, dentists can prevent the occurrence of another surgical site, and reduce patient morbidity.

3. The harvested bone is then transplanted into the jawbone. A bone graft allows natural bone to grow and thereby create a solid base for a dental implant eventually. Once the jaw bone has healed from the grafting, then the dental implant process can move forward.

What’s The Recovery Time after Bone Grafting?

After the bone grafting procedure has been completed, it can take several months for the jaw bone to take to the new piece of bone. Healing is gradual and total healing is possible only if patient is completely healthy. For example, bone grafting can create secondary complications in chronic diabetics.  The estimated time of recovery depends on individual cases, but it definitely takes several months for the transplanted bone to grow sufficiently within the jaw to support a dental implant.

What Happens After The bone Grafting Is Healed

Once the healing is complete, periodontist who performed the surgery will place an extension of the dental implant called the abutment into the jaw. There’s a break after this for the tender gum tissue to heal. Once the gum is healed, moulds of the jawbone and the teeth are taken and the implant is designed. Once the implant is ready, the insertion can take place without any hassles.

What About Patient Comfort Post The Procedure?

After the bone grafting surgery is complete, the patient may experience some amount of typical discomfort. They may experience swelling in the gum or the skin surrounding the mouth, or some amount of minor bruising and bleeding. These are common side effects and if the patient is in good health, will fade quickly.

The patient is required to follow a few diet restrictions as well. Till the bone grafting is completely healed, the patient should not chew on hard foods. He or she is restricted only to soft foods such as rice, soft bread, cooked veg mash and the like. This restriction must be followed for several weeks after each stage of the bone graft and implant procedures.

Who Is Qualified To Perform Bone Grafting Surgery?

Bone grafting and dental implants are delicate and extensive surgeries. Only a board-certified specialist in dental implant surgery and periodontology can be authorised to perform these procedures. It’s not advisable to use one’s family dentist for these procedures, even though that might save a few dollars initially. Given that bone grafting and dental implant both are sensitive and multi-stage procedures, getting them done by a qualified periodontist and dental implant surgeon are of the utmost importance.

Conclusion

Bone grafting and dental implant processes may be time-consuming. However, if you have serious problems with a missing vital tooth, or if you have several missing teeth which have changed the contours of your face over time, don’t hesitate. Obtain the service of a certified periodontist and obtain a healthy smile that you’ll be proud to display to others. Even though the surgery is time-consuming, the end results are permanent and worth the time you’ll be putting in.

Want to know more about the Bone Grafting Procedure? Visit our Livonia Dentist office or call us at (734) 522-5520 to schedule your free initial consultation.