St. Luke’s OMS is your premier source for bone grafts in the Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, and Stroudsburg, PA area. If you are missing teeth, a bone graft may be part of the dental restoration solution you are looking for. Over a period of time, the jawbone associated with missing teeth atrophies, or is reabsorbed. This often leaves a condition in which there is poor quality and quantity of bone left that is suitable for the placement of dental implants. In these situations, most patients are not candidates for dental implant procedures.
Today, our dentistry services include the ability to grow bone where needed. This not only gives us the opportunity to place implants of proper length and width, but it also gives us a chance to restore functionality and a natural aesthetic appearance.
Bone grafting can repair dental implant sites with inadequate bone structure due to previous extractions, gum disease, or injuries. The bone is either obtained from a tissue bank or your own bone is taken from the jaw, hip or tibia (below the knee). Sinus bone grafts are also performed to replace bone in the posterior upper jaw. In addition, special membranes may be utilized that dissolve under the gum and protect the bone graft and encourage bone regeneration. This is called guided bone regeneration or guided tissue regeneration. Read on to learn more about various bone grafting and other dental restoration procedures.
Major Bone Grafts for Dental Restoration
Major bone grafts are typically performed to repair defects of the jaws. These defects may arise as a result of traumatic injuries, tumor surgery, or congenital defects. Large defects are repaired using the patient’s own bone. This bone is harvested from a number of different sites depending on the size of the defect. The skull (cranium), hip (iliac crest), and lateral knee (tibia), are common donor sites for bone grafts. These dental restoration procedures are routinely performed in an operating room and require a hospital stay.
Sinus Grafts to Equip You for Dental Implants
If enough bone between the upper jaw ridge and the bottom of the sinus is available to stabilize the implant well, sinus augmentations and implant placement can sometimes be performed as a single dental restoration procedure. If not enough bone is available, the sinus augmentation will have to be performed first, then the graft will have to mature for several months, depending upon the type of graft material used. Once the bone graft has matured, the implants can be placed.
Restore Your Lost Ridge With Our Dental Treatments
In severe cases, the ridge has been reabsorbed and a bone graft is placed to increase ridge height and/or width. This is a dental treatment used to restore the lost bone dimension when the jaw ridge gets too thin to place conventional dental implants. In this procedure, the bony ridge of the jaw is literally expanded by mechanical means. Bone graft material can be placed and matured for a few months before placing the implant.
The Oral Surgeons You Can Trust
Bone Grafts for Dentures
One or more of the following bone graft procedures might need to be performed in order to prepare your mouth for a denture:
- Bone smoothing and reshaping
- Removal of excess bone
- Bone ridge reduction
- Removal of excess gum tissue
- Exposure of impacted teeth
OUR PATIENTS SAY
We love getting feedback from our patients! If you’re still undecided about whether or not you can trust St. Luke’s OMS to handle your oral surgery needs, than please feel free to see what others are saying on our testimonials page.
I can’t say enough good things about Dr Saunders and the entire staff at OMS! The level of care is superior as is the genuine care for your overall well-being. The staff is always available to answer any of your questions and concerns and all of their locations are equally superb!
Called made an appointment for a wisdom tooth extraction. Was in and out within a half hour. Unbelievable service and amazing pricing. Wouldn’t go anywhere else. Thank you to everyone there that made this painless.
I have had extractions and one implant so far with St. Luke’s OMS Bethlehem and highly recommend them. Dr. Isaac and her team have always been stellar. Gentle, caring, just a top notch group. So grateful to be a patient of the practice and Dr. Isaac.