Neglecting your dental health leads to several other complications, such as digestive problems and even cardiovascular challenges. Unfortunately, people remain unfamiliar with the severity of different dental health issues, and numerous orthodontic treatments also stay shrouded in mystery. For instance, people generally don’t understand how dental bone grafting works or why they may need it. This blog discusses this procedure, talks about different types of bone grafts, and explains why some people must consider undergoing this process. After reading this article, you can easily determine whether your dental health demands bone grafting right now. So, let’s begin with the definition of this orthodontic procedure.
What Is Bone Grafting?
Some dental experts call it a “scaffold” or a “placeholder.” They compare bone grafting with spackling a hole in the wall. By spackling the hole in your mouth caused by tooth loss, dental implants become more easily inserted in the future. So, this process will increase the amount of bone in a particular part of the jaw to make the placing of implants possible. Also, compared to other places, dental health in places, e.g., Lehi, can be more affordable. If you, too, reside in Lehi, Utah, you can find orthodontic treatment by searching for specific processes, like “bone grafting near me in Lehi, Utah” and find reliable facial surgeons. Also, we’ll discuss some types of bone grafting South Jordan-based surgeons offer.
How can we describe bone grafting? In simple terms, this procedure involves transplanting bone tissues to promote the growth of healthy bones. Your body’s natural bone-creating process sometimes needs a stimulant, and that’s what a bone graft does! In the dental health sector, bone grafting can help people suffering from tooth loss (explained in the relevant subheading). When you lose a tooth, you can replace it with dental implants.
Types Of Bone Grafting
What are some drawbacks of not having a bone graft? Leaving the gap left by a missing tooth unfulfilled can decrease the width and height of the bone. This bone-shrinking effect makes you a poor candidate for a dental implant in the future. That’s why a missing tooth should be treated immediately. But where do you get the bone graft material? Dental experts have mentioned three major sources for that:
- Synthetic bone grafting material
- Allograft, i.e., the material taken from a living donor or a corpse
- Autograft, i.e., the material taken from your body parts, e.g., the insides of the mouth
The high success rate of this procedure justifies around 2.2 million bone grafting processes happening all over the world each year. So, how many types of bone grafting treatments are there? There are several types of bone grafting procedures. It will depend on the nature of your dental health problem. However, bone graft surgery can typically be divided into the following types. Here are these three main types:
- Ridge Expansion: This one’s a complicated procedure as it involves a surgeon splitting the jaw’s bony ridge (i.e., expanding it) to insert the bone graft material in the opening.
- Socket Preservation: This procedure is the simplest form of bone grafting surgery. The surgeon will place the bone graft material in the gap left by a missing tooth to regrow the bone.
- Sinus Lift Procedure: This one involves replacing your upper teeth. In short, the surgeon will lift your sinuses and insert the bone graft material in these cavities.
Why Do You Need Bone Grafting?
Let’s move on to the next query: “Why do some people need a bone graft?” You’ve already read about a missing tooth leading to bone grafting for a successful dental implant. Losing your teeth means you lose the roots as well, and when a missing tooth stays unreplaced for a long time, the jaw bone can become too weak to support an implant. That’s why bone grafting becomes necessary for such dental patients. A study shows that some 178 million Americans are missing at least one tooth. However, missing teeth are just one reason people often need bone grafting. There are many other reasons you must consider bone grafts right now. For instance, here are some other causes a dentist may recommend bone grafting:
- Facial injury: Getting hit in the face can cause people to chip/lose a tooth. Bone grafting cures such injuries as well.
- Birth defects: Many people are born without a tooth and some other dental issues. But these dental health problems can be treated by getting a bone graft.
- Gum Disease: Several forms of gum disease, like gingivitis, periodontitis, and others, can weaken your jaw bone, thereby loosening your teeth. So, undergoing bone grafting can strengthen them by promoting the healthy growth of bone tissues.
Some Faqs Regarding Bone Grafting
Question #1: Does It Hurt To Get A Graft?
Your gums can feel sore after the procedure, but the process itself isn’t painful.
Question #2: Can A Bone Graft Be Unsuccessful?
Your body may reject the bone graft, or the graft may get infected (because the mouth is the gateway to several diseases).
Question #3: Are There Any Eating Restrictions Post-Graft?
It’s better to eat from the left side of your mouth if the graft is on the right side. Also, don’t touch it with your finger or play with it with your tongue.
Question #4: How Long Can It Take For A Bone Graft To Heal Properly?
If you’re asking about the graft itself, then it may take more than three months to heal properly. A dental implant can be inserted in your mouth after the graft has healed.
Question #5: Are The Patients Sedated During The Process Of Bone Grafting?
You might receive a short of procaine, but, other than that, you can be wide awake during the process. A driver, however, should bring the patient back home for safety reasons.
Conclusion
So, what have you learned from this blog? You learned that bone grafting is transplanting bone tissues in the mouth to repair your jawbone. This procedure patches up damaged bones if there’s a tooth missing. So, bone grafting makes dental implants possible for patients. With a bone graft, your jawbone may get strong enough to allow for an implant. This procedure is also a good idea for people who suffered facial trauma.