ProceduresGuided bone regeneration · Implantology

Bone grafting
and sinus lift

When bone is missing where an implant goes, it can be regenerated. Bone grafting and maxillary sinus lift restore the volume needed to place the implant with stability.

Book your consultation→Step by step↓

Anesthesia: Local, with conscious sedation available
Planning: CT scan of bone and sinus
Socket preservation: 3–6 months to the implant
Sinus, lateral window: 4–9 months to the implant

Approximate values: every case is different and your plan confirms them at the consultation.

Why is bone missing?

After an extraction, the bone that held the tooth is gradually reabsorbed. In the upper jaw, the maxillary sinus also tends to take over that space. The result is an area with too little height or width for an implant.

Guided bone regeneration places a graft material—the patient's own, bovine, tissue-bank or synthetic—covered with a membrane, so the body forms new bone there. A sinus lift does the same upwards: it lifts the sinus membrane and fills underneath.

Is it for me?

01You were told you lack bone for an implantgrafting is usually the step that makes it possible.
02You are having a tooth out and want an implant laterpreserving the socket at the same visit keeps the bone.
03An upper molar has been missing for a whilethe sinus may have dropped; the CT scan shows it.

Techniques

Three techniques, depending on where bone is missing.

The CT scan decides the technique: how much bone there is and where the sinus sits.

01At the extraction
Socket preservation
The socket is filled right after the tooth comes out so the bone is not lost. The implant follows 3 to 6 months later.
02Lateral window
Lateral sinus lift
A small window in the sinus wall allows the membrane to be lifted and the graft placed. Used when a lot of height is missing; the implant usually follows months later.
03From the crest
Transcrestal sinus lift
The membrane is lifted through the implant site itself. Used when little height is missing and often allows the implant at the same visit.

Step by step

Bone first, then the implant.

01Before
CT scan
Measures bone height and width and the position of the sinus. Defines the technique.
02Day 0
Graft
Under local anesthesia, with sedation available. The graft and membrane are placed and sutured.
031–2 weeks
Check-up
Healing check and suture removal if needed.
043–9 months
Maturation
The graft turns into the patient's own bone. Timing depends on the technique and the size of the defect.
05Then
Implant
New imaging confirms the volume and the implant is placed.

Recovery

What to expect afterwards

Days 1–3
Moderate swelling and discomfort; cold packs and the prescribed medication. A bruise on the cheek may appear.
Week 1
Soft diet on the other side. After a sinus lift: no forceful nose blowing, sneeze with the mouth open, no straws.
Weeks 2–3
Suture removal if any; most people resume their routine.
Months 3–9
No discomfort: the graft matures inside. Imaging check-ups.

Frequently asked

What patients ask before deciding.

It is done under local anesthesia, so it should not hurt during the procedure. The following days bring swelling and discomfort, managed with the prescribed medication.

It can be the patient's own bone, bovine, tissue-bank or synthetic, almost always covered with a membrane. It is chosen according to the defect and explained at the consultation.

The lateral approach enters through the sinus wall and gains more height; the transcrestal one enters where the implant will go and is used when less is missing. The CT scan decides.

Sometimes: with the transcrestal technique and some socket preservations, if the bone gives stability. With large defects the graft is left to mature first.

Cold packs, soft diet, gentle hygiene and the prescribed medication. After a sinus lift, avoid forceful nose blowing and sneeze with the mouth open during the first weeks.

It depends on the technique, the size of the defect and the material. It is defined after the CT-based consultation.