Ridge augmentation surgery or bone grafting

WHEN DO YOU NEED A BONE GRAFT?

This procedure might be needed in cases where placing an implant is impossible because part of the bone has been absorbed or thinned down, and does not provide a proper stable support for the implant. This may be the case if too much time has passed since the tooth extraction, but sometimes it is simply a congenital condition. This kind of surgery may be necessary for aesthetic or for preventive reasons. 

We use a variety of bone substitutes and membranes during the surgery to restore the width of the bone. After this, you need 9 months for the bone to heal firmly.

THE PROCEDURE STEP BY STEP

The procedure is performed under local anesthesia and is usually painless, thanks to the use of the most modern anesthetic substances and technologies. If you do feel pain during the procedure, please let us know immediately!

The procedure starts by creating a flap. After this, the bone is rebuilt using a bone substitute, your own bone material or a mixture of the two, and this is then covered with a membrane. We usually need to fix the membrane to the bone.
The bone substitute substance we use in the procedure is a product called “Bio Oss”: a lyophilised, sterile organic scaffold for bone from a biological source.

The membrane can be an absorbable or a non-absorbable product. If the latter is used, it will be removed after 9 months in a second surgery. It is often necessary to also widen the soft tissues: this is done by transplanting the patient’s own tissue that we take from the palate. Over time, this donor area will fill up again nicely, with new cells growing back in place of the tissue we took. The surgery is completed by placing sutures.

IMPORTANT TO KNOW AFTER THE SURGERY

Please do not eat again after the surgery until the numbing effect of the anesthetic has worn off. Drinking liquids is allowed. It is important to ice the area: for this, apply facial cream first to the region that needs cooling, then wrap a cooling gel pack in a piece of cloth, and place it on the area for 5 minutes – repeat the cooling every 5 minutes.

You will also need antibiotics and painkillers: your treating dentist will inform you about these after the surgery. It is also recommended to take probiotics along with the antibiotic, in order to prevent gastrointestinal side effects. In the first two weeks, the affected area should only be cleaned by rinsing or with a soft (surgical) toothbrush.

Cleaning the oral cavity will be a bit more difficult for a time, but good oral hygiene is essential for successful healing. Rinse your mouth with Curasept ADS 220 solution twice a day after brushing. Use the concentrated solution without dilution: swish it around your mouth for at least a minute, and do not rinse afterwards.

Soft, easily chewable foods are recommended following the surgery.

POSSIBLE COMPLICATIONS 

Some pain in the surgical area is natural. It can be effectively relieved using painkillers. Pain may also radiate into the neck or the facial muscles in some cases. You may experience limited mouth opening, in which case it is recommended to only eat soft, mushy food or liquids in the first few days.

Facial swelling may develop after the procedure, which can vary from person to person. The swelling usually reaches its peak on the second or third day after the intervention, and decreases gradually after this. In some cases it can take a bit longer for the swelling to go down completely: up to one or two weeks. The superficial bruise which seeps down from the surgical area can cause some discoloration under the skin of the face or the neck, which will disappear on its own within a few weeks.