When patients hear about the dental implant procedure, they don’t always consider what may have to happen beforehand to prevent failure. Our Southgate, MI, dentists will of course discuss your treatment plan with you prior to getting started but dental bone grafts can come into play when there isn’t sufficient volume or density in your jaw to support a titanium post.

Here’s what you need to know about bone grafting and how it factors into the process of receiving a dental implant.

What Does a Dental Bone Graft Involve?

If you’re familiar with other types of bone grafts, then you know it’s the replacement of bone material where it’s needed most. The same goes for those of the dental variety. If you’ve lost a tooth, whether through extraction or neglect, our dentists will use a dental bone graft to fill the area in your jaw and encourage regeneration.

The oral surgery itself can be broken down into 4 distinct steps. We’ll start by administering the local anesthesia so the area being worked on is properly numb. If you would also like dental sedation to calm your nerves, we can provide that as well. Next, the area is thoroughly cleaned and an incision in the gum tissue is made.

Once there is room, our dentists will insert or place the bone material between two sections of existing bone so that they can grow together and become strong. Lastly, we’ll suture the area closed so that healing can begin.

Note → If you’re undergoing a tooth extraction before your dental bone graft, that step will need to be performed before the bone material is inserted.

The Common Nature of Bone Grafts for Implants

Unless you’re an experienced dentist who specializes in the procedure, it can seem like dental implant bone grafts don’t occur much. In fact, they are very common and many in line for an implant qualify for one. Our dentists can go over all of the details that pertain to your specific treatment to let you know whether or not a bone graft is necessary.

Even if you’re not interested in having a dental implant placed, we may still recommend the procedure to treat an area affected by severe gum disease, tooth loss, and bone loss. Our dentists only want what’s best for your smile so if a compromised portion of your jaw is discovered, we will strongly encourage you to consider the bone graft.

Healing & Recovery After a Dental Bone Graft

You can expect to experience some discomfort, swelling, and possibly bruising following a dental bone graft. These are all normal side effects and shouldn’t last more than a few days after your appointment. Our dentists may instruct you to take over-the-counter- pain relievers as needed to ease what you’re feeling. Antibiotics may also be prescribed.

Patients might be alarmed to notice tiny pieces of bone exiting the treated area in the first few days but this is not out of the ordinary. The pieces themselves should be no larger than a grain of sand or salt. Please double check with our dentists to ensure your healing is going as planned if this occurs.

Your mouth will need time to heal completely before the implant can be put in place. This may take anywhere from four to six months depending on your progress. Once you’re healed up, we’ll have you back into our Southgate, MI, dental office for the implant procedure and then later on for the abutment (connector piece) and crown.

Get Evaluated By Our Implant Dentists

In order to know whether a bone graft is appropriate for your smile, our dental implant dentists serving Southgate and Greater Detroit, MI, will need to evaluate your jawbone. Call Northline Dental today at (734) 284-8088 to request an appointment and get started.