Thin Jawbone, Rejected for Implants? It Can Be Resolved with a Sinus Lift Procedure.

Hello.

I’m the director of Seoul Bardi Dental Clinic.

I keep hearing, “Implants are difficult because the bone is too thin.”

I’m not even sure how many times I’ve heard that already.

Today, I’d like to introduce a case of a patient who had been rejected for implant treatment multiple times because the jawbone was too thin,

and was treated with a sinus lift procedure.

<Table of Contents>

Why Thin Jawbone Makes a Sinus Lift Necessary
A Case of Full-Arch Implant Treatment with a Sinus Lift

Thin Jawbone, Why a Sinus Lift Is Necessary

This patient had no teeth in the upper jaw,

so they had been using a full denture for a long time.

If you go without teeth for a long period,

the bone is gradually resorbed and becomes thinner.

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When we took a look at this patient’s X-ray,

the bone had become very thin.

In most places where teeth have been lost,

implant surgery is possible,

but there is one area where surgery is especially difficult.

That is the upper molar area,

because of an anatomical structure called the “maxillary sinus.”

The maxillary sinus is an air-filled space located directly above the upper molars,

and it is surrounded by a thin membrane.

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In the image, this area is the maxillary sinus,

and the reason it appears black is because the inside is open and empty.

To place an implant stably,

the bone height needs to be at least 7–8 mm.

However, this patient had only 1.5 mm of bone left.

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So how do we fill the remaining depth?

We solve it through a sinus lift procedure.

A sinus lift procedure is

when the thin membrane of the maxillary sinus

(a tissue as thin as an eggshell)

is carefully lifted,

and artificial bone is placed in the space underneath

to create new bone height.

In simple terms, you can think of it as

creating a new “foundation” where an implant can be placed.

2. A Case of Full-Arch Implant Treatment

with a Sinus Lift

This patient had no upper teeth at all,

so the plan was to place a total of 9 implants.

Because the bone in both molar areas was thin,

we decided to perform a sinus lift and bone grafting together.

Let’s also look at the CT scan.

The yellow-marked jawbone area is,

easily seen to be very thin, even with the naked eye.

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We planned to fill the maxillary sinus with bone like this.

This is the photo after implant placement.

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Those with a sharp eye may already have noticed

what has changed.

Before placement

After placement

Before placement, the white part—the bone—was very thin,

but after placement, you can see that the white area has become larger.

This white area is the bone grafted area.

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The angle and position of the implants were placed exactly where I wanted them.

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In cases where a sinus lift has been performed,

because the jawbone was very thin and weak,

we wait a little longer for the implant and bone to fuse.

For this patient, it took about 9 months

until the implant crowns could be placed.

Some people ask how they are supposed to eat until then.

Don’t worry—we make a temporary denture like this!

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This is the condition after the implant crowns were placed.

Because the jawbone was so thin and low from the beginning,

the teeth look a bit long.

We decided to make them so the sunken gums would look natural with the implants.

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Ta-da! The teeth look much more natural.

We covered the gum-side portion of the teeth with pink porcelain to express the gums naturally.

One of the biggest success factors in a sinus lift procedure is preventing the thin membrane from tearing.

This means it is more technically demanding than a standard bone graft.

Because of this, general dental clinics sometimes refuse treatment or refer patients to a university hospital.

This patient was in the same situation.

Fortunately, we were able to help them complete treatment successfully at our clinic,

and we’re truly glad we could.

Have you been told that implant placement is difficult because your jawbone is too thin?

We will help solve it at Seoul Bardi Dental Clinic.

https://blog.naver.com/implant_master/224044763571

Thank you.

Thin Jawbone, Rejected for Implants? It Can Be Resolved with a Sinus Lift Procedure.

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| This post was written directly by Seoul Bardi Dental Clinic for the purpose of providing medical information in compliance with Article 56, Paragraph 1 of the Medical Services Act. The provided information is for reference only, and we recommend visiting a medical institution and receiving guidance from medical staff for symptom assessment and accurate management methods. All procedures/surgeries performed at the dental clinic may carry individual risks (such as inflammation, bleeding, swelling, etc.). Please make decisions after sufficient consultation with medical staff in advance. The treatment cases in this post were photographed with the consent of patients who completed treatment at our clinic, and the before-and-after photos were taken under the same conditions. |