Bone Grafts and Implants in London

At our London Dental Practice, our dentists can use bone grafts to build up a thin or shrunken jawbone. If you are considering an implant but dental x-rays show that you have a thin jawbone as a result of bone loss then a graft will be necessary.

Your jaw may show advanced bone loss as a result of the ageing process, prolonged denture wear, missing teeth, periodontal gum disease or as a result of an accident.

Types of bone grafts we do

• Autogenous or Autografts
• Allografts
• Xenografts
• Alloplastic

Autogenous Bone Grafts

By far the most popular and successful of all the grafting techniques. It involves the removal or ‘harvesting’ of bone usually grafted from the hip.

The hip is the preferred source as this is rich in marrow which means a ready supply of bone cells. This bone is then grafted into the jawbone. This is the most successful of all four techniques as the grafted bone aids with the regeneration of the jawbone.

Allografts

Similar to an autogenous bone graft, allografts are harvested from human donors and not your own body. If you are not keen to have an autogenous bone graft then an allograft is your best choice.

Xenografts

The bone graft used in this procedure is harvested from animals. Bovine grafts are the preferred form of animal graft used at our practice. Although uncomfortably sounding, this type of bone grafts are safe as they are sterilised and rigorously tested prior to their use in humans.

Alloplastic

This is a man-made graft, not harvested from natural bone. The graft is made of a synthetic material and can be one of two types:

Resorbable: An alloplastic that will be absorbed by your body and used as a structure to grow new bone. This graft is used as a supporting structure for the implant.

Non-resorbable: An alloplastic graft that will not be absorbed by your body and used as a structure to hold your implant in place.