Bone grafting can repair implant sites with inadequate bone structure due to previous extractions, gum disease or injuries. The bone is either obtained from a tissue bank or your own bone is taken from the jaw, hip   or tibia (below the knee.) Sinus bone grafts are also performed to replace bone in the posterior upper jaw. In addition, special membranes may be utilized that dissolve under the gum and protect the bone graft and encourage bone regeneration. This is called guided bone regeneration or guided tissue regeneration.

Major bone grafts are typically performed to repair defects of the jaws. These defects may arise as a result of traumatic injuries, tumor surgery, or congenital defects. Large defects are repaired using the   patient’s own bone. This bone is harvested from a number of different sites depending on the size of he defect. The skull (cranium), hip (iliac crest), and lateral knee (tibia), are common donor sites. These procedures are routinely performed in an operating room and require a hospital stay.

In severe cases, the ridge has been reabsorbed and a bone graft is placed   to increase ridge height and/or width. This is a technique used to   restore the lost bone dimension when the jaw ridge gets too thin to   place conventional implants. In this procedure, the bony ridge of the   jaw is literally expanded by mechanical means. Bone graft material can   be placed and matured for a few months before placing the implant.