Q: What is a socket preservation, and how do I know if I need one? – Stephen L.
Bone loss around tooth requiring socket preservation
A: Socket preservation is a type of bone grafting procedure that helps preserve the integrity of the jaw bone ridge after a tooth extraction. Some people experience severe bone loss and consequent collapse of the jaw bone ridge after a tooth extraction. This type of post extraction ridge collapse happens when the bone socket surrounding a tooth is very thin (usually in the front area) or when there is already a significant amount of bone loss around a tooth.
Let’s look at the radiograph to the right. The tooth in question is shown with the red arrow (tooth #5). You can see the dark color around the tooth. The bone level is shown with the blue dotted line. From the radiograph, experienced dentists can tell that there is significant bone loss on either the outside (buccal) or the inside (palatal). It is usually the outside bone that is lost.
After removing the tooth, there was no bone on the outside. Since the patient wanted to have an implant in the area, I placed some bone graft material after cleaning out the socket. Placing bone graft material after a tooth extraction like in this case is called socket preservation. After the bone graft takes place, a dental implant is placed.
Whether you need a socket preservation or not is best determined by your dentist. As in the image above, your dentist can tell before the extraction. Sometimes, it can only be determined after an extraction.
Questions? Ask Dr. Implant.
