|
Most people believe bone is like cement, or like a rock. It is not. Bone is a living tissue which is constantly tearing itself down and building itself back up brand new. Using knowledge of bone physiology allows us to regenerate, or grow bone where it has been lost.
Bone loss can result on two ways: Bone loss next to a tooth, and bone loss in an area where there is no tooth.
The first type of bone loss would be a steep vertical defect next to a tooth. This is usually related to prior disease in the site. If the defect is a cupped out area with distinct bone walls we can clean out the defect, fill the defect with bone graft material, and cover the bone graft with some sort of barrier (membrane). Your body will tear down the bone graft and replace it with your own natural bone, thereby repairing some of the defect. Research studies say we can usually get ~70% defect fill. Some areas of the mouth are more predictable to graft than others. Talk with your Periodontist about your individual needs.
  
The second type of bone loss is in an area where there is no tooth, such as where an extraction was previously done. This type of bone loss corresponds with the "form follows function" principle. When a tooth is in function it is loading the bone, and the bone says "I am needed here." If a tooth is missing, the bone is no longer being loaded, and the bone says, "I am not needed here anymore" and it starts to shrink away. Again, we graft the site with bone graft material, and cover over the entire site with a membrane. Your body will tear down the bone graft and replace it with your own natural bone. This generally takes 8 months for the bone to be mature. Now the ridge is rebuilt and you can get your implants placed.
Another form of bone grafting is Block Grafting, which is done when large amounts of bone loss has taken place.
Where do you get the bone?
We get it from a number of sources, but the primary source is from donor banks. Just as you can get a kidney transplant, or liver transplant, so too can you get a bone transplant. We can also get  bone from animal sources such as bovine (cow) or porcein (pig). The reason this works is because the molecular structure of bone is the same across species. And using our knowledge of bone physiology we know that your body will tear down the bone graft and replace it with your own natural bone.
Is it safe?
To date, out of the millions of bone grafts that have been done, there has never been a single case of disease transmission. We get our bone from only reputable sources such as the American Red Cross and LifeNet.
Back to Top
|
