Sinus Augmentation (a.k.a. Sinus Graft or Sinus Lift Graft)

The roots of your natural upper teeth extend up into the maxillary sinuses behind your cheeks and above your front teeth. When these upper teeth are removed, only a thin wall of bone separates the maxillary sinus and the mouth.

It is sometimes impossible to place dental implants in this bone, which is often quite thin. But there is a solution: sinus augmentation. This relatively new procedure makes it possible for patients to have dental implants when years ago they would have been forced to wear a denture.

The dental implant surgeon inserts donor bone into the floor of the sinus (the roof of the upper jaw) elevating the sinus wall in some cases. After several months of healing, the bone fuses to the patient’s jaw and dental implants can be inserted and stabilized in this new sinus bone.