Osteoplasty

Before a tooth implantation two surgical interventions may be necessary, if it seems like on the basis of the panoramic X-ray and the small X-ray pictures that the implant cannot be securely inserted. The essence of sinus lifting is that the upper jaw is made thicker in the direction of the maxillary sinus and so a bed is made for the implant, which can embed in a suitably thick bone, the bone replacing material.

Osteoplasty is performed when the bones are so thin that they cannot hold an implant, not to say for example a total denture placed on an implant. Bones chiefly get thinner when the places of teeth after the extraction of a tooth are not filled immediately with implants. In such cases the place of the tooth is not pressed as much as before, and the bones start to decay. After decay only a thin fibre of bone remains, which makes insertion of implants impossible. In such cases sinus lifting cannot be performed either if the fault of the upper jaw is intended to be corrected.

There are several methods for performing osteoplasty: the bones of the patients themselves are used (evidently it needs several operations as some bones need to be removed for example from behind the wisdom-teeth), or bones of animal origin, or bone replacing materials can be used. Of course, in the latter case materials are used which are recognized by the organism as that of its own, and rejection is not expectable.

In the first stage of osteoplasty the material replacing bone is inserted in the marked location, and after six months of waiting the replacement will reossify with the original, remaining bone. However, recovery may take even one year, this is to be checked by X-ray. After the ossification it is time for the implantation operations which can securely be performed.