Socket Preservation

Addition of Bone to Tooth Extraction Sites to Maintain Bone for Later Dental Implant Placement or to Support Planned Tooth Replacements.
When teeth are removed in areas that might have an implant placed or where there is a desire for a nice cosmetic outcome, a socket preservation procedure is often needed. The bone can often be very thin on the outer side of a tooth especially toward the front of the mouth. Extraction of a tooth without socket preservation can allow some of the bone to die and the ridge to narrow and shrink to the point that an implant may not be possible, or the cosmetic appearance of an implant or bridge is severely compromised. Socket preservation is a procedure where bone or a bone substitute is placed into the hole left by the extracted tooth to help hold the blood clot in place and nourish the bone while the bone heals to its maximum potential. This often reduces the need for more costly ridge augmentation procedures after healing, depending on the condition of the bone prior to the extraction.

---

Back