If you’re a candidate for a dental implantation procedure, you may find yourself wondering – what will be involved? For some patients – those who don’t have adequate thickness or density of the jawbone – a bone grafting procedure may be required prior to the actual implantation procedure.
If you’re a candidate for bone grafting, what can you expect during the process? These guidelines should help you understand the procedure a little bit better.
1. How Bone Grafting Works
The type of bone grafting required for dental implantation is known as “ridge augmentation.” Bone loss tends to occur when a tooth or teeth are missing – patients who have worn dentures, for example, may have experienced a lot of jawbone erosion. If there is not enough thickness or density of the remaining bone, a ridge augmentation procedure can be used to replace the lost bone.
2. Where the Graft Material Will Come From
Bone for grafting procedures can come from the patient’s own body – frequently from the back, chin, hip or shin bones – which will require a surgical procedure for removal. Graft material can also come from a tissue bank, or it can come from cadaver, bovine or synthetic bone, which both reduces cost and eliminates the need for the patient to undergo additional surgery.
3. How to Prepare for Surgery
Preparation for bone grafting surgery is much like preparation for any substantial medical procedure. You will have a series of pre-operative tests and lab work, as dictated by your dental surgeon. As with any medical procedure, you’ll want to arrange a ride to and from the hospital. You will likely be asked to stop taking aspirin and anti-inflammatory medications for a period of time prior to the procedure, and to refrain from eating or drinking the night before surgery so that the anesthetic procedure has no complications. The day you enter the hospital for surgery, you’ll want to follow common-sense procedures – leave jewelry at home, don’t wear makeup or contact lenses, and wear loose-fitting, comfortable clothing.
4. Recuperation Time Prior to Dental Implantation
If you do have bone graft surgery, there will be a recuperation period before your implantation procedure. Recuperation from the removal procedure varies from patient to patient, and depending on the area the graft material was taken from – so consult with your doctor about timeframes. Surgical risks include bleeding, infection and nerve injury. Post-operative instructions may involve reduced activity, a healthy diet, exercising non-affected areas of the body, elevating the upper body during sleep, and regular acetaminophen or painkillers. You may need to avoid putting weight on the affected area for a period of time. Your doctor will determine when you’ve fully healed from the procedure with an X-ray examination.
5. Cost of the Bone Graft Procedure
Cost of the procedure will primarily depend on the grafting material used. If the patient’s own bone is used, the cost for the bone removal procedure can be anywhere from $2,000-$30,000 – talk to your doctor to get a practical estimate. If cadaver, bovine or synthetic bone are used – eliminating the need for additional surgery – the cost can be anywhere from $200-$1,200.