Dental bone loss – Do you need jawbone augmentation?

Dental bone loss: The structure of the bone tissue in the jaw bone may perish. This can be caused by osteoporosis, which is a disease affecting the whole skeleton. General bone loss is caused by lack of exercise and malnutrition. On the other hand, decay of the jawbone is mostly the result of periodontitis.

Dental bone loss- What are the symptoms?

Dental bone loss is usually insensible, and happens without pain or visible signs. As the condition worsens, the patients usually notice red, swollen gum, which bleeds when washed, loosening teeth, bad breath and a change in their bite.

What causes dental bone loss?

The two most common causes for bone loss in the jaw bone is periodontitis, or if you do not replace a lost tooth. In the first case, we are speaking of an inflammatory disease caused by inadequate oral hygiene. The bacteria in the mouth accrue and cause a permanent inflammation, which – if not treated in time – destructs the gingiva and the bone tissue. The second cause is the effect that a missing tooth exerts on the bite. If the distribution of the bite power is uneven, it leads to bone loss in the unstrained areas.

How do we treat dental bone loss?

Every case is individual, there is no generally effective treatment. This is because the extent and position of bone loss is always different.

An advanced state bone loss needs more invasive treatments for the effective and expected output. This means a surgical intervention called bone augmentation or bone graft. There are different types of bone graft, such as mini lift, sinus lift, etc. but they have one thing in common: they are usually cost-intensive. Speaking of the procedure in general: a special bone transplant material is surgically applied to the area in need.

What are the potential bone grafting materials?

During the surgical intervention, the remaining bone mass is filled up with a replacement material. The material is always chosen by the specialist based on the patient’s condition for the best result. The possible materials are either synthetic bone, that of animal origin or one’s own bone usually harvested from the hip bone or other part of the jaw bone.

Either materials have their pros and cons, but the choice of the surgeon always depends on what’s best for the patient.

If you suffer from dental bone loss and are in need of treatment, send us an X-ray and get a quote within 24 hours.