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Bone Grafting
Over a period of time, the jawbone associated with missing teeth reabsorbs or "melts" away. This often leaves a condition in which there is poor quality and quantity of bone suitable for placement of dental implants. In these situations, most patients are not candidates for placement of dental implants.
We now have the ability to grow bone where needed. This gives us the opportunity to place implants of proper length and width, and it also gives us a chance to more effectively restore esthetic appearance and functionality.
A bone graft is a surgical procedure that replaces missing bone with material from the patient's own body or an artificial, synthetic, or natural substitute. Dr. Kilimitzoglou usually uses deproteinized bone substitute. These bone mineral granules are gently and skillfully placed at the area of deficient bone and provide a scaffold for undifferentiated blood cells. The analogy is this: the bone graft is a "bone training center" and the undifferentiated blood cells in the area "don't know what they want to be when they grow up". By going to "bone school" they are trained to differentiate or "grow up" to be bone cells; your own bone cells.
This revolutionary bio- engineering technique not only replaces missing bone, but also helps your body to regenerate its own bone. This new bone growth strengthens the grafted area by forming a bridge between your existing bone and the graft material. Over time your own newly formed bone will replace the grafted material.
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