What is dental bone regeneration?
Dental bone regeneration consists of recovering the quality and level of bone mass lost in the jaws. This technique is mainly used in implantology with the final objective of placing artificial teeth.
Oral surgery specialists will choose the most appropriate technique according to the patient’s characteristics. Currently, there are two dental bone regeneration techniques:
- Bone grafting
- Plasma rich in growth factors
Why is it performed?
As the years go by we can suffer loss of bone mass in the jaws. This can be due to different causes, such as diseases like periodontitis or osteoporosis, infections, atrophy or trauma, among others.
When placing implants, it is important to have good bone tissue so that they can remain in the patient’s mouth for a long time. Therefore, if we have lost bone tissue, bone regeneration techniques will be necessary.
What does it consist of?
On the one hand, dental bone regeneration by bone grafting consists of a surgical intervention that seeks to replace the lost bone. The transplanted bone can belong to the patient himself, be from a donor or from commercially available bone substitutes (of animal, vegetable or synthetic origin), as long as they are compatible with the patient.
On the other hand, the Plasma rich in Growth Factors technique consists of extracting blood from the patient to obtain the proteins found in the plasma. These are applied to the area in order to regenerate.
The growth factors stimulate the production of blood vessels, the multiplication of cells, prevent the multiplication of bacteria and modulate inflammation.
With this procedure, the bone around the implants is regenerated, improving its consolidation. It also helps the healing of wounds.
Preparation for dental bone regeneration
First of all, it is necessary to make a joint diagnosis. If it is decided that dental bone regeneration is necessary, the feasibility of bone grafts should be assessed first.
A 3D scan of the jaws will be performed to determine the height, width and quality of the patient’s bone.
Post-operative care
Once the intervention has been performed, the patient has to wait a few months while the graft or the Plasma Rich in Growth Factors helps the generation of new bone.
The patient should visit the specialist so that he/she can follow up the intervention and prevent possible infections or complications.
Alternatives to treatment
If the dental bone cannot be regenerated and, therefore, the application of a dental implant is not possible, the alternative will be the use of dentures or removable prostheses.