When certain concerns develop with your oral health, there can sometimes be additional factors to consider that may not be immediately obvious at first. For example, take the loss of your healthy, natural tooth structure. After losing one or more teeth, it can seem like the worst of the condition is obvious, especially in its impact to your smile’s appearance and the overall feel of your bite. However, there’s more to the loss than you may realize at first, especially the consequences of losing teeth roots and how the loss impacts the health and integrity of your jawbone structure.
Why jawbone grafting is recommended
Jawbone grafting is a surgical procedure designed to fortify areas of jawbone structure that have grown weak due to various reasons. In the case of tooth loss, for example, the jawbone structure surrounding a lost tooth root can begin to resorb upon itself the moment the tooth is uprooted. This means the bone structure loses mass and density in that area, making the entire structure weaker and less able to sustain the rest of your healthy, natural teeth. The weakening of your jawbone can also begin to visibly impact your facial appearance if it isn’t fortified and restored promptly.
The role of bone grafting in rebuilding your smile
If you’ve experienced tooth loss and have restored your smile with a conventional dental bridge or denture, then your restoration may lack the ability to fully restore your smile and prevent the loss of your jawbone’s health and integrity over time. This can be stopped by placing one or more dental implants within your jawbone ridge, where you’ve lost one or more teeth roots. Dental implant posts can reestablish the stimulation that your teeth roots provide your jawbone, and that is necessary for sustaining its healthy supply of minerals and nutrients. However, if your jawbone is significantly weaker, then jawbone grafting may be necessary in order to strengthen it in preparation for your dental implant placement.
Benefiting from a stronger jawbone
Fortifying your jawbone structure can be an important part of preparing for dental implant placement, but receiving dental implants isn’t the only reason why you may benefit from the procedure. For instance, if you’ve already shown signs of facial collapse due to the loss of your teeth roots, or if you’ve experienced facial trauma that includes damage to your jawbone structure, then bone grafting may be an appropriate solution for restoring the health and integrity of your smile as well as the full function of your bite.
Learn if you should consider jawbone grafting
If your smile’s foundation has lost some of its mass and density, then jawbone grafting could be an effective way of restoring it. To learn more, schedule a consultation with us by calling the office of Dr. Stuart Dexter in Prairie Village, KS, today at 913-362-8200.