Will I need a bone graft after a tooth extraction?

Patients who are planning to get dental implants after a tooth extraction may need bone grafting in certain circumstances. It may be possible to prevent the need for bone grafting, but ultimately if this supplemental procedure is necessary, it will be instrumental in dental implant success.

After evaluating your case, your oral surgeon will determine whether it is possible to proceed with placing your dental implants or if bone grafting is indicated.

Benefits of Bone Grafting

Dental implants are so effective in replacing missing teeth because they become fixtures in the patient’s jaw and serve as artificial tooth roots. This is a result of osseointegration, the process in which the patient’s bone tissue fuses with the titanium surface of the dental implant.

In order for osseointegration to be completed, the patient must have adequate bone tissue at the implant site. If there is not enough bone to support osseointegration, the dental implant may fail prematurely.

Bone grafting can help to overcome this barrier. In this procedure, your oral surgeon will take bone tissue from a donor source elsewhere in your body or from an exogenous source and insert it at the implant site. After you have healed from the bone graft, you can proceed with getting dental implants.

When Bone Grafting Is Needed Before Dental Implant Placement

Certain circumstances may increase the likelihood that bone grafting will be needed. They include:

• Delay in replacing an extracted tooth with a dental implant – Bone loss occurs after tooth loss, so if patients wait too long to pursue dental implant placement, that bone loss may be too severe.
• Significant amount of bone is removed in the extraction: If there is not enough bone remaining after the extraction, supplemental bone tissue may be needed.
• Congenital bone deficiency at the implant site: Patients may have pre-existing bone defects that preclude dental implant placement unless they undergo bone grafting first.

Ultimately, an oral surgeon can only decide whether a bone graft would be beneficial after evaluating your case. Call Central Oklahoma Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Associates today to schedule your initial consultation.