Creating a Better Smile With Jawbone Grafting
May 12, 2021
When you lose mass and density in your smile due to tooth loss, or problems with the growth and development of your smile causes imbalance and discomfort, you may need oral surgery. Jawbone grafting, also known as ridge augmentation, could enable your Kansas City, MO, dentist to essentially rebuild your smile!
The Grafting Process
Basically, we will use bone tissue to build up portions of the smile that have issues with balance and structure, or have lost density due to tooth loss. The procedure begins with the administration of a local numbing agent, as well as dental sedation to ensure you remain calm and comfortable throughout the procedure. We then open the area and apply tissue to the portions of the smile in need. We could use bone from other parts of you body, such as the back of your jaw or from your hip. There are also donor and synthetic tissues available. As the tissue bonds with the smile, this creates a stronger smile, paving the way for a symmetrical and balanced bite.
Improving Symmetry and Preventing Jawbone Issues
Temporomandibular joints connect your jaw and skull, and controls the movements needed to eat and speak. These are complex joints, and issues with balance and strain could place pressure on them, leading to chronic pain. You could also develop complications, such as TMJ disorder or even bruxism (chronic teeth grinding). To avoid worsening symptoms and protect your smile, we could use the grafting procedure to rebuild portions of the smile and provide greater balance to your bite. This eases strain and puts a stop to your chronic pain, which also protecting your teeth from bruxism and other complications. Symmetry also provides cosmetic benefits too!
Preparing Smiles for Dental Implant Placement
If you lose one or more of your teeth, your body will respond by suspending the flow of key nutrients to the surrounding bone tissue. Without these regular doses of calcium and phosphorus, the bone tissue begins to break down gradually. Further tooth loss could occur, as could an older appearance. Dental implant placement could halt this break down and stimulates the growth of bone tissue, but your jaw may no longer be able to adequately support one or more of them. With ridge augmentation, we rebuild a base to secure implants and replace missing teeth.
If you have any questions about these oral surgical procedures, or about tooth replacement, then contact our team today to learn more.
Do You Need Ridge Augmentation?
Our team can use this procedure to rebuild your smile and prepare it for implant placement. To learn more about rebuilding your smile with oral surgery, then schedule a consultation by calling Cosmetic & Implant Dentistry of Kansas City, MO, today at 816-427-4018.