Bone Graft Specialist
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Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery
Oral Surgeon & Maxillofacial Surgeon located in Poncey Highland/Midtown, Atlanta, GA
Dental implants with crowns or dentures make the most natural replacements for lost teeth, but some people don’t have enough bone in their jaw for an implant. All is not lost, however, as the team at Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery in Poncey-Highland, Midtown Atlanta, offers the finest quality materials and procedures for bone grafts. You can take advantage of the benefits of dental implants with or without a bone graft by calling Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery today or book an appointment using the online scheduling tool.
Bone Graft Q&A
What is a bone graft?
A bone graft involves adding extra bone to your jaw to make a secure foundation for a dental implant.
The graft is made up of bone taken from your body combined with donated sterile human bone. The bone graft procedure for dental implants is typically a simple in-office process that takes place under a local anesthetic.
Sometimes bone grafts are needed for serious problems such as congenital disabilities, traumatic injuries, or after tumor removal. These types of procedures take place in an operating room.
Why would I need a bone graft?
If you lose one or more teeth, an effective way to restore your smile is to have dental implants. These consist of a screw made of biomaterials that your Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery provider inserts into your jaw. Dental implants provide a secure, durable base for natural-looking replacement teeth, but you do need to have enough bone to support the implant.
Some of the reasons you might not have enough bone in your jaw include:
- Missing teeth
- Tooth removal
- Diseased teeth
- Gum disease
- Dental infections
- Fractured teeth
These can all lead to bone loss. If you don’t have sufficient bone for the type of implant your provider is fitting, a bone graft can build up your jaw enough to make dental implants possible.
What types of bone graft are there?
There are three major types of bone graft:
Socket preservation graft
The socket is the hole where your tooth was before you lost it. If you have a tooth taken out, your provider can perform socket preservation grafting at the same time to help prevent loss of bone. Bone loss can occur very soon after having a tooth removed, so a bone graft at the time of extraction preserves your jawbone for any dental implants you might want in the future.
Onlay cortical bone graft
If you have severe loss of bone, you might need to undergo onlay cortical bone grafting. This procedure uses a bone block taken either from your chin or where your wisdom teeth are in the back of your mouth. The bone goes into the empty tooth socket ready to take a dental implant.
Ridge split bone graft
Dental implants need enough depth of bone to sit in securely, and some people have a ridge that’s too narrow for an implant. In this case, your provider can split the ridge to insert the implant. Ridge split bone grafting makes a space that needs filling with another piece of bone.
The team at Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery uses the highest quality allografts from human donors. Your provider explains why you need a bone graft and how the procedure is going to be done and is happy to answer any of your questions.
To find out more about bone grafts and dental implants, call Rockwell Oral and Facial Surgery today or book an appointment online.
Notes: We use the best allografts on the market, usually require referral beforehand, Dr. Rockwell goes through how/why they are doing bone grafting, make sure they know why its necessary to stabilize their bite/jaw.
