Authors : E. Matoulas , I. Nazaroglou , P. Kafas and D. Charitoudi
Abstract: Nowadays, distraction osteogenesis is being widely used for increasing the height of the alveolar ridge before the placement of dental implants. Distraction osteogenesis can be considered as an alternative to many other augmentation techniques. Compared with the conventional techniques of bone grafting and guided bone regeneration, alveolar distraction osteogenesis seems to have significant advantages such as, lower infection rate, no donor site morbidity and gain of soft tissue. It can be achieved by intraosseous or extraosseous devices and the whole procedure includes the latency phase, the distraction phase and the consolidation phase. Despite the referred advantages, the technique still has significant limitations. Consequently, alveolar distraction osteogenesis cannot be considered as an uncomplicated procedure. However, complications related to this technique are mainly minor and can be solved with simple treatment. According to many studies, it can be concluded that although, distraction osteogenesis is an effective surgical procedure to treat vertical alveolar deficiencies, especially before implant placement, there is a need for more clinical studies on implants placed in distracted alveolar bone based on long-term follow-up.
E. Matoulas , I. Nazaroglou , P. Kafas and D. Charitoudi , 2009. The Reconstructive Potential of Distraction Osteogenesis on Defects of the Alveolar Ridge Before Dental Implants Placement: A Review. Research Journal of Medical Sciences, 3: 123-132.