The "foundation master" of the oral environment! What you must know about "alveolar bone preservation" after tooth extraction
After tooth extraction, in addition to placing collagen according to the situation, why would the doctor also advise the patient to fill the missing tooth with “bone powder combined with regenerative membrane”? Dr. Qiu Peiyan of Parkside Dental Clinic said that if each tooth is regarded as a “house”, the alveolar bone can be regarded as the “foundation” of the tooth. When the foundation is unstable, it is prone to shaking and collapse, and may even have to be rebuilt. “No one wants the tooth foundation to be as unstable as ‘soil liquefaction’, so the thickness and depth of the foundation are very important!” The “alveolar bone preservation procedure” of timely intervention of bone powder and regeneration membrane is expected to make the tooth foundation more stable.
Reconstruction after tooth extraction needs to be thorough! Pre-work is essential
Dr. Qiu Peiran explained that every bite between teeth is restraining each other to maintain dynamic balance. Therefore, when teeth are missing, it is easy for the left and right teeth and the opposing teeth to invade the space of the missing teeth. If the gap is not filled in time, the back teeth and the teeth that bite the gap will tilt forward and grow in the opposite direction. “This is also the main reason why whenever a patient has missing teeth, we recommend that they must undergo “reconstruction.” The pre-reconstruction work must not be sloppy, as it may affect the patient’s bite after reconstruction.”
Dr. Qiu Peiran pointed out that if no measures are taken after missing teeth, based on clinical experience, the missing tooth area will shrink significantly downward and become narrower, which is not conducive to future dental implant treatment. The assessment of dental implants includes the vertical depth and transverse width of the bone. To meet the criteria for a good prognosis, “alveolar bone preservation” must be performed during tooth extraction. If you do not receive treatment immediately after tooth extraction, you may have to spend more time and energy in the future and conduct more sophisticated instrument testing.
“Alveolar bone surgery” is divided into four categories. Suitable surgical procedures vary from person to person.
In fact, alveolar surgery will vary depending on the situation of the missing teeth. Dr. Qiu Peiran pointed out that alveolar bone surgery can be roughly divided into 4 types:
Spine preservation surgery. It is one of the most common surgeries. The method is to place collagen or bone powder in the wound after tooth extraction, and then suture it.
Horizontal bone augmentation. After tooth extraction, the width of the bone in the wound should be preserved and its thickness should be maintained. If the thickness meets the standard but the height and width are insufficient, a third type of surgery must be performed: vertical bone grafting.
Vertical bone augmentation. Through a large amount of bone powder and regenerated membrane, the height and width of soft and hard tissues are stretched to the standard, which is a test of the doctor’s skills and professionalism.
Sinus augmentation surgery. Since the location of the sinus varies from person to person, when performing maxillary tooth extraction, if the bone under the sinus cavity is narrow or is close to the nasal cavity, it may easily cause accidental injury during subsequent reconstruction. At this time, it is recommended to perform “sinus augmentation surgery”. There are two methods. One is to make a hole on the outside of the sinus, lift the sinus, and make room for placing bone powder to thicken the bone to help future reconstruction; the other is The sinus augmentation and bone filling are performed from the direction of the missing tooth area.
Don’t let the alveolar bone preservation technique fall by the wayside. The “reconstruction” plan must proceed step by step.
Dr. Qiu Peiran said that alveolar bone preservation surgery can help guide bone regeneration. The surgical process is like “making dumplings”. Bone powder is first placed on the defective alveolar bone, and then it is covered with a regenerative membrane made of collagen or titanium. The regenerative membrane can prevent bone powder from flowing out from the wound and affecting the growth of bone powder. During this process, the bone meal grows smoothly in the right position, and in principle, new bone will grow in 3-6 months.
Dr. Qiu Peiran suggests that when the bone grows to the point where it can be “reconstructed”, he will recommend moving directly to the next treatment plan. Without reconstruction work, the missing front and rear teeth may still tilt toward the missing tooth area. Whether it is periodontal and bone repair surgery, or even dental implant reconstruction in the future, current surgical techniques have become more and more mature, and the risks are relatively low. Therefore, as long as you follow the doctor’s instructions before and after surgery, no matter what happens, Seek the assistance of professional doctors as much as possible, and there will be no major problems in wound healing.
Further reading:
Is it necessary to add “collagen” to remove wisdom teeth? Doctor: The key is the size of the wound!
