Bone Grafting in Marion, Ohio

Dental implants offer a reliable way to restore your smile—but they need strong jawbone support to work properly.

During your consultation, Dr. Yanich will take detailed X-rays to check your bone level.

If you don’t have enough bone, you may need a bone graft in Marion, Ohio, before moving forward with dental implants.

What is Bone Grafting?

Over time, the jawbone around missing teeth begins to reabsorb and atrophy. Unfortunately, this often leaves patients with poor quality and quantity of bone needed for dental implants. In these situations, most won’t be good candidates for dental implants.

Bone grafting is an oral surgery procedure that involves adding mass to the jawbone. By doing so, you’ll have the following:

A stronger jawbone, making it more capable of supporting dental implants.
An improved appearance since you’ll have a better foundation for facial structures.

Who Needs a Bone Graft?

Dental bone grafting is done when the jawbone is too thin or too soft to support a dental implant. This often happens after tooth loss, infection, or gum disease. Without enough bone, implants can’t stay in place or heal properly.

You may need a bone graft if:

You’ve had a tooth missing for a long time
Your jawbone has shrunk after an extraction
Gum disease has damaged the bone around your teeth
An injury or infection has caused bone loss
You’re planning to get dental implants but don’t have enough bone to support them

Bone grafting rebuilds the jaw so it can hold an implant securely. The graft material helps your body grow new bone in the area.

If you need dental bone grafting in Marion, Ohio, we’ll first evaluate your bone level using a CT scan or X-ray. Then we’ll place the graft material in the site—usually under local anesthesia. After healing, your jaw will have the stability needed for your next steps in treatment.

Types of Bone Grafting Procedures

There are many types of bone grafting procedures, each dependent on the location of the surgery and the patient’s needs. Here are the bone grafting procedures available at Yanich Oral Surgery.

Major Bone Grafting

Major bone grafts are necessary to fix locations where an implant was previously removed or when there is significant wear from injury or gum disease. The bones come from a tissue bank and different body parts, such as the jawbone or hip.

Minor Bone Grafting

Minor bone grafts fix irregularities in the jawbone typically due to accidents, congenital disabilities, or surgery for tumors. If there’s a large amount of deterioration, Dr. Yanich will take bone from other areas, like the skull, hip, or outer knee, to perform the procedure.

Ridge Expansion

If the bone dimension and ridge are too thin for an implant, Dr. Yanich performs ridge expansion and filling in that gap by widening or lengthening the existing bone. Then, through mechanical force, the graft material is placed so it can mature over several months before being ready to support an implant.

Yanich Oral Surgery's Bone Grafting Procedure

Anesthesia is given.
You’ll receive local anesthesia to keep you comfortable and pain-free during the procedure.
Gum tissue is prepared.
Dr. Yanich will numb the gums and make small incisions to gently move the tissue aside. This gives him access to the bone beneath and helps determine how much grafting is needed.
Bone is collected (if needed).
If your graft requires bone from another part of your mouth or body, Dr. Yanich will make a second incision to remove the bone at this stage.
Graft material is placed.
The bone graft—whether from your own body or donor material—is placed in the area where bone is missing. The gums are then closed with stitches.
Graft is secured.
A small titanium screw or other material may be used to stabilize the graft. In some cases, a protective membrane is placed over the graft to support healing.
Final sutures are placed
Dr. Yanich will close the surgical area with sutures to begin the healing process.

Dr. Yanich's Post-Operation Recovery Tips

After a bone grafting procedure, it is important to follow Dr. Yanich’s post-operation recovery tips to ensure a smooth and successful recovery:

Diet: Eat a soft, mild, and nutritious diet for two to four days after surgery. As the tissue around the bone graft heals, you can return to your regular diet.

Swelling: Swelling is common after oral surgery and will peak approximately two days post-op. To minimize facial swelling, sleep with your head elevated on two pillows and apply cold compresses (30 minutes on, 30 minutes off) during the first 48 hours.

After that time period has elapsed, switch to warm compresses (again, applied for 30 minutes at a time with equal periods of rest in between) until the swelling goes down completely.

Bleeding: If you find that you’re bleeding heavily, it’s likely because the gauze pads are clenched between your teeth rather than pressing against the surgical area. Try using fresh pads and repositioning them so the pressure will be directly on the surgical site.

Pain: You can take over-the-counter medications like ibuprofen (Advil® or Motrin®), acetaminophen (Tylenol®), or aspirin if you’re not allergic to them or they don’t interfere with any other medications you’re taking.

After a bone grafting procedure, it is important to follow Dr. Yanich’s post-operation recovery tips to ensure a smooth and successful recovery:

Expert Care You Can Rely On

Bone grafting is a delicate and complex surgical procedure that can help to restore functionality and aesthetics to the jawbone. Bone grafting may be necessary in cases of extensive tooth decay, bone loss, or ridge augmentation.

Dr. Yanich has the skills to perform bone grafting procedures efficiently and quickly. He’ll also work with you to ensure a smooth and successful recovery. If you’re considering dental implants and live in the Marion, OH, area, schedule an appointment with Dr. Yanich today to see if you’re a candidate for this procedure!

Wisdom Teeth Removal

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