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Will an x ray show if a bone graft is coming out?

M

MountainMama

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 1, 2018
Messages
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I had an extraction and bone grafting last week on Monday. It was at my dentist and not at the oral surgeon (long story). He did not cover or stitch the graft, just said the gums would grow over it.

Since Friday, chunks have been coming out, and the graft keeps rising. Every time it rises like a bubble over the top of the extraction site, the top breaks off. Then it rises again. I have lost small pieces and one piece the size of my pinky nail.

The dentist is getting me in tomorrow, but the receptionist said he didn't seem too worried and said it wouldn't all come out.

How will he know if it has taken or not? If it still looks "full" because there is grafting at the surface, will an x ray show?

I have been through this with stitched grafts, so I know losing some is completely normal, and that as the swelling went down more would be exposed. However there has been a LOT of stuff coming out, and it is continuously losing tiny pieces.
 
Did you ever had a membrane in there? I'm guessing the piece the size of your pinky nail might be this. I initially had stitches after the extraction, but once they dissolved, I only had my membrane there and the grafting material under it.

X-ray may or may not show if the graft is being taken well. The dentist should look for the absence of some of the signs of a failed bone graft, the gum tissue characteristics, and the x-ray. The moment of truth may only come at the time of implant placement when the gum tissue is opened to expose the grafted area.
 
Did you ever had a membrane in there? I'm guessing the piece the size of your pinky nail might be this. I initially had stitches after the extraction, but once they dissolved, I only had my membrane there and the grafting material under it.

X-ray may or may not show if the graft is being taken well. The dentist should look for the absence of some of the signs of a failed bone graft, the gum tissue characteristics, and the x-ray. The moment of truth may only come at the time of implant placement when the gum tissue is opened to expose the grafted area.

There was no membrane. I did not realize before the appointment that it would not be covered. He said he mixes a gel with the grafting material that makes it set up so that it stays put. The dental hygienist told me that they don't do membranes or stitches.

I don't want to be worrying about this for the four or five months before the implant surgery.
 
I got my question answered at the dentist today. The x ray showed that one of the root "holes" was filled (he called it the distal root), but the other one was empty. He said that there was still enough grafting material in there to take, though, and that the empty one was covered enough at the top so that the gums wouldn't fill in. He scraped some of the bone grafting off the top where it had risen again, to down below the gum line.
 
May I suggest to your local dentist that he look at a product called Bioxclude. It is easy to use and does a great job at holding in bone graft while encouraging the tissue to grow over it.
 
May I suggest to your local dentist that he look at a product called Bioxclude. It is easy to use and does a great job at holding in bone graft while encouraging the tissue to grow over it.

I wish he did use it. He told me he has been doing this a long time and it is rare that one comes completely out. It makes me so nervous, though, and afraid to eat or drink much for fear of dislodging it. I still feel little pieces coming out. I see the oral surgeon on Friday for my implant consult, and, honestly, I may ask him if there is anything he can do to cover it.
 
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