Dental Bone Grafts in San Jose, CA

prepare for dental implants

Bone Grafts in San Jose

If you are in San Jose and you need a bone graft to prepare for a dental implant or to correct congenital defects or damage to your jaws, Dr. Tuan Vo is here to help. As an experienced oral surgeon, Dr. Vo can restore your jaw, and ensure that it remains healthy and strong for years to come. Learn more about our bone grafts in San Jose below, or contact us for an appointment.

what is a bone graft?

understanding the basics

A bone graft is an oral surgery that is used to strengthen your natural jaw bone. Most commonly, this procedure is done before you get a dental implant, particularly if you’ve had a missing tooth for a number of years.

This is because, after tooth loss, the jaw tissue where your missing tooth used to be will no longer be strengthened and stimulated by chewing. This causes it to atrophy and become weaker, in a process called “bone resorption.” Patients can lose as much as 25% of their jaw bone structure within a year of tooth loss.

A weak jaw can negatively affect your appearance, and also prevent you from having a dental implant, which is the best way to restore your smile. A bone graft is used to replace the missing bone with bone taken from your body or synthetic bone. New bone material is packed into the area that needs to be strengthened, and the surrounding bone tissue will heal around it. This strengthens your jaw, and ensures you can get a dental implant.

restore teeth for implants

Minor Bone Grafting

Minor bone grafting is typically required to restore your jaw bone to prepare for a dental implant. If you have been missing a tooth for a number of years, or gum disease has damaged your jaw bone and the surrounding tissue, a bone graft may be required before you can have an implant placed.
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Dr. Tuan Vo will create a customized treatment plan, and use bone material from a tissue bank or your own bone to replace your natural bone. In some cases, the repositioning of the inferior alveolar nerve may be done simultaneously, if necessary for your implant. Once the bone material has been added, a special membrane will be added to protect the graft and ensure that the bone regenerates properly.
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If you are having your upper jaw treated, a procedure known as a “sinus lift” may be required. This involves gently lifting the sinus lining during the bone grafting process to make room for the new bone material.

repair damage to your jaw

Major Bone Grafting

Major bone grafting is a bit different than minor bone grafting. Rather than strengthening the jaw for the placement of a dental implant, this procedure is typically used to repair major defects of the jaws caused by things like surgery for oral cancer, congenital defects of the jaws, or damage from traumatic injuries.
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In these procedures, bone is always taken from the patient’s own body, from a site like the hip, shinbone, or skull. Compared to minor bone grafting, this is a much more invasive and complex procedure that typically must be performed in a hospital operating room, and requires a hospital stay during recovery.