How Long Does It Take for The Bone To Grow After A Dental Bone Graft?

Your body, including the jawbone, tends to shrink as you age. Tooth loss, jaw injury, and advanced gum disease are factors behind jawbone damage. Unfortunately, a weakened or diseased jawbone can affect oral health and function in various ways. That’s where dental bone grafts come in.

In this article, let’s learn what bone grafting is, why it’s important, how it’s performed, and how long it takes to recover.

What is bone grafting?

Bone grafting is repairing or rebuilding an injured, diseased, or insufficient jawbone. The dentist or surgeon transplants new bone tissue to the diseased or weakened jawbone to stimulate new growth.
You can obtain the graft materials from various sources, including:

• Autograft. The bone graft is obtained from your body, like the hips, legs, or ribs. Using your tissues increases the chances of successful bone grafting. The only major downside is that you’ll have multiple wounds to heal.
• Allograft. The graft tissues are obtained from a human donor. The tissues are cleaned and sterilized thoroughly to ensure the patient’s safety.
• Synthetic bone grafts. The graft tissues are produced from artificial materials. These materials contain proteins that support and stimulate bone development.
• Xenografts. The new bone tissues are obtained from non-human species like cows. The materials are thoroughly treated and sterilized to prevent new infections.

Do You Need a Bone Graft?

Your dentist or surgeon can recommend bone grafting for several reasons, including:

• Rebuilding and strengthening the jawbone before dental implant surgery
• Repairing multiple or complex jaw fractures
• Regenerating weakened or lost bone due to disease, infection, or injury
• Correcting facial disorders

Before performing the graft, our dentist will examine your teeth, gums, and bone health. Dental X-rays are necessary to determine the extent of bone damage or loss. Next, the dentist will create a personalized treatment plan and discuss other details about the treatment.

Bone Grafting Procedure: What to Expect

During the grafting procedure, you’ll receive anesthesia to prevent pain and keep you comfortable. Next, the dentist will make an incision through the gums to access the bone. If any, the surgeon will remove infected or diseased tissues. Next, they clean and disinfect the area to prevent infections. They remove the graft materials beforehand.

Next, the dentist adds bone grafting materials to the bone to repair the defect. In some cases, they cover the graft with a membrane for protection. Lastly, the gum tissues are repositioned and stitched for healing.

What to Expect After Bone Grafting

Following a bone grafting, you will likely experience minor pain, swelling, and bruising. Fortunately, these effects should fade away in a few days. The dentist will give you medication to manage pain and inflammation and prevent infections. Take the medication strictly as directed.

Other tips for facilitating faster healing include:

• Use a cold compress.
• Rest adequately and keep your head elevated.
• Maintain excellent oral hygiene.
• Eat a soft food diet for the next few days. Avoid hard, chewy, and spicy foods.
• Hydrate adequately.
• Avoid tobacco products and alcoholic beverages.
• Avoid touching or disturbing the surgical site.
• Rinse with salt water.

While rare, be sure to notify the dentist if you experience any serious symptoms like:

• Severe pain
• Persistent or worsening inflammation
• Heavy or worsening bleeding
• Fever
• Infection
• Numbness or tingling near the graft site.

Like most patients, you might also wonder how long after the bone graft you can eat. Generally, don’t eat or drink anything until the anesthesia wears off completely. Doing so risks injuring the surgical site and other soft tissues like the cheeks and tongue. Once the anesthesia wears off, consider eating soft and cool foods and drinks.

How long does it take for the bone to fuse completely?

Your gums and mouth only take a few weeks to heal. However, complete dental bone grafting healing takes 3 – 9 months and sometimes longer. The healing process depends on factors like oral and overall health, type of graft, age, and size.

Your dentist or surgeon will schedule follow-up appointments to monitor the healing of the graft. Typically, bone grafts are highly successful. Still, it’s essential to ensure you work with an experienced and highly qualified dentist to reduce the risk of complications.

Schedule an Appointment Today

Are you interested in dental bone grafting in Chestnut Hill, MA? Contact Hammond Pond Dental Group to book your appointment today.