Do I Need a Sinus Lift Before I Get Dental Implants?

When you lose a tooth, it does more than just create a gap in your smile. It can make it difficult to do things as commonplace as speaking clearly, chewing properly, and interacting with the world confidently. In time, the lack of stimulation to your jawbones can even cause them to deteriorate, encouraging more tooth loss and making restorations like dental implants a challenge without preliminary procedures. Thankfully, treatments like bone grafting and sinus lifts can help restore this deterioration, strengthening your bones enough to receive dental implants. Here’s everything you need to know about sinus lifts, and what you can expect from the procedure.

What is a Sinus Lift?

A sinus lift is a surgical procedure which grafts bone to your upper jaw around your molars and premolars. The treatment lifts the maxillary sinus membrane upwards, creating space for the additional bone tissue. Though your sinus system has many parts, the maxillary sinuses are the closest to your teeth. That’s why you may feel like your teeth ache when you have a cold or stuffy nose.

Why Do I Need a Sinus Lift?

If you don’t have enough bone density in your upper jaw to support your dental implant, your dentist will recommend a sinus lift first. In order to work, your prosthetics must fuse with your jawbone in a process known as osseointegration. Unfortunately, however, if your bones aren’t dense enough, you are at an increased risk of dental implant failure.

Reasons you may need a sinus lift may include:

• Previous damage to your jawbone from trauma or a difficult tooth extraction
• A cyst or tumor was removed from the area
• Jawbone deterioration due to periodontal disease
• Receding bone from tooth loss
• A naturally large sinus cavity or thin jawbone

What to Expect from a Sinus Lift

Your sinus lift will use bone from your own body, either from the mouth or another area of your body such as your hip or tibia.

During the procedure, your dentist will cut out the gum tissue over the area where your teeth used to be, exposing the bone. They will then make a small oval-shaped opening in the bone, and the sinus membrane on the opposite side will be pushed away. Next, bone granules are fitted into the space where the membrane was.

In most cases, your dentist will add several millimeters of bone, but this will vary by patient. Once enough bone has been filled, they will stitch the tissue back together.

Immediately following your sinus lift, you can expect to experience some swelling, and you may bleed from your nose and mouth. Be careful not to blow your nose with force or sneeze, because this could force your stitches to open. Your dentist will provide you with moisturizing nasal spray and decongestants to take during healing, as well as medication to prevent infection. Thankfully, most patients experience very little discomfort following a sinus lift. If your stitches don’t dissolve on their own, you’ll need to return in about ten days to have them removed.

The graft can take anywhere from four to nine months to attach. Once this is completed, your mouth will be ready for your new dental implants!

Remember, dental implants are a life-changing tooth restoration treatment, but in order to receive them you may need a preliminary procedure like a sinus lift to help increase the odds of success. To learn more about whether you’re a good candidate for dental implants, please schedule a consultation with your dentist today!

About Our Practice

At Chester County Dental Arts, our goal isn’t to make you feel bad about your oral health, its to make you feel proud of your smile! If you’re ready to take the first life-changing step towards restoring your missing teeth with dental implants, Dr. Simeone and the team can’t wait to help. To schedule a consultation, please visit our website or call us directly at 610-383-1600.