Ridge Augmentation
 When you suffer tooth loss, it is essential that you have those teeth replaced as soon as possible. Dental implants have become the most popular treatment for replacing missing teeth, restoring the functions of your missing teeth, your smile, as well as protecting the health of your jawbone. However, for implants to be placed, you need to have enough bone mass in your jaw. If your jawbone is lacking the necessary bone mass, Simon K. Choyee, DDS, Inc. can make implants possible with a ridge augmentation.
What are Dental Implants?
Dental implants are a treatment designed to replace missing teeth. This treatment uses small titanium posts to support dental restorations. The posts are surgically placed into your jawbone. As you heal from surgery, your bone fuses to the posts. This process, called osseointegration, stabilizes the posts in your jaw, turning them into replacement roots that hold your new teeth securely in place.
The Effects of Bone Loss on Dental Implants
For dental implants to be successful, the fusion of your jawbone to the posts, a process called osseointegration, needs to occur properly. You need to have sufficient bone mass in your jaw. However, following tooth loss, you begin to lose bone mass in your jaw. If you lose too much bone mass, your jawbone may not be able to fuse properly to the implant posts. This can result in loose posts and unstable restorations. You can also experience complete implant failure.
Ridge Augmentation
A ridge augmentation is a surgical procedure that restores strength to your jawbone. It is generally performed when your jaw has lost a significant amount of bone mass. A ridge augmentation not only restores mass, but it also helps to rebuild the height and width of the jaw, giving it back its strength. This requires the use of a bone graft.
Bone Grafts for Ridge Augmentation
A ridge augmentation may be performed using one of a few different types of bone grafts. During your initial consultation, we go over your options for bone grafting and can help determine the best type to meet your needs.
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Autograft. An autograft involves the use of bone harvested from your own body. The bone is typically taken from the hip or tibia. Because we use your tissue, there is no risk for disease transmission or graft rejection.
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Allograft. An allograft uses bone mass taken from a tissue bank. The bone is screened before it is used to reduce the risk of complications. The biggest benefit of this type of graft is that we do not need to make any additional surgical cuts to harvest tissue.
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Xenograft. A xenograft involves the use of non-human bone mass. The bone is processed at high temperatures to make it safe for use. Like an allograft, there is no need for additional surgical wounds. |
What to Expect During a Ridge Augmentation
A ridge augmentation is done under local anesthetic and sedation. Your sedation options will be discussed during your initial consultation. Surgery begins with small incisions in your gums to expose your jawbone. We then take the harvested bone tissue, whether they are your own or from another source, and place it in your jaw. As you heal from surgery, your existing bone fuses to the graft material, which helps to restore the strength of your jaw. Once you have fully healed from surgery, we can then begin the process of placing your dental implants.
A ridge augmentation helps to restore height, width, and mass your jaw, making it strong enough to support dental implants. This helps to greatly increase their success and stability. Call Simon K. Choyee, DDS, Inc. today at (562) 947-4781 for more information and to find out if a ridge augmentation is right for you.
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