When you visit your dentist and oral surgeon and together you have decided to have implants, you might face a problem. Implants are being implanted to your jawbones, and during the healing period, the bone fuses to your implants, so they will be able to serve as the new roots for your crowns or dentures. This is all nice, but what happens when you don’t have enough bones for such an operation. This can happen due to personal, genetic factors, and relate to the number of the ages you have spent without teeth. In this case, wherever there is a missing tooth, the bone is not “used”, therefore leads to bone deficiency.
Bone augmentation is a special procedure, where bone materials are being built to the existing bone material. This way, there will be enough bone material for the implants. When the implantation takes place in the upper jaw, we talk about sinus lift.
Sinus lift
A Sinus lift or sinus augmentation is a surgical procedure, where the surgeon adds bone to the upper jaw. This can be artificial or natural bone material. The bone material is being placed in the maxillary sinus area (both left and right to the nose) and the jaw. The sinus membrane is moved upwards, so there will be enough space for the implants. Since this is a rather complicated surgical procedure, it must be performed by a specialist.
By Evergreen Dental, Dr. Attila Simay is responsible for all of our implantation procedures. He is very skilled and well-practised in these procedures.
Why would you need a sinus lift?
There are specific reasons why a patient may need sinus lift. For once, it might be the case that the bone height of the upper jaw is too short, therefore not suitable for the implantation. Another problem might be that the sinuses are too close to the jaw itself. The cause of bone loss can be periodontal gum disease, the loss of teeth and therefore the reabsorption of the bone.
How is a sinus lift surgery done?
After the CT scan, the doctor can see the volume of your bone, and you two can agree on having a sinus lift surgery. We, at Evergreen Dental do this surgery in full anaesthetic, so the patients can sleep through the procedure. Upon starting the surgery, the doctor will cut the gum tissue and raise it, exposing the bone underneath. Then the surgeon will cut a small hole in the bone, lift the bony piece into the sinus cavity and fill the hole with the bone grafting material. Finally, the surgeon closes the hole and the cut and the healing process can start.
What to do after sinus lift?
The healing period varies from one patient to another. Right after the sinus lift, you may experience some swelling, or light bleeding. You should try not to blow your nose or sneeze after the surgery, as these can make the bone material move or loosen the stitches.
After the surgery, you will get painkillers and antibiotics.
After the healing period, which is generally 6 months, the implants can be placed.