The maxillary sinus is a cavity located within the cheek bone. It is a pyramid-shaped, growing space with a membrane lining the sinus called the Schneider Membrane. The ends of the roots of the upper back teeth are close to the maxillary sinus and in some cases, even inside of it.
The maxillary sinus helps in moisturizing and heating up the air when breathing. It plays an important role in vocal resonance and diminishing the weight of the head.
A baby’s maxillary sinus is almost nonexistent. As opposed to an elder person whose sinus is expected to be large. The maxillary sinus’ volume in an adult is 15mL, growing an average of 2mm per year. The natural process of sinus enlargement is called pneumatization.
Who needs a Sinus Lift?
After losing one or more teeth in the upper jaw, the maxillary sinus grows in size even further from the normal limits. This is because the bone in the sockets reabsorbs itself when there are no longer teeth to support. Implants need bone to support them.
X-rays allow the visualization of the remaining bone’s thickness. A minimum of 5mm is required to consider placing dental implants. One can receive a maxillary sinus lift and then rehabilitate with dental implants.
The procedure
A sinus lift procedure consists in placing bone on the thin lower wall of the sinus to increase its thickness. Afterwards dental implants attach to it and become stable.
A surgery is necessary to place the bone graft. Among the types of bone for grafting and depending on the patient’s clinical conditions, synthetic or autogenous bone are commonly chosen. Sometimes they use a mixture of them. Autogenous refers to the patient’s own bone extracted from the hip bone or another part of the jaw.
After the bone grafting surgery, 6 to 8 months are given to allow healing. The bone is incorporated and reorganizes the added material.
What other options do I have?
If maxillary sinus lift or dental implants surgery cannot be performed, the treatments of choice are partial or total dentures.
The mouth is a dynamic system. It is important to not leave edentulous (no teeth) areas untreated because the lack of chewing function. Lack of support can cause further problems and worsen the oral conditions.
If you are interested in getting a maxillary sinus lift procedure in Costa Rica, please fill out the “Help me find a Dentist!” form and a participating dental specialist will contact you to discuss your case.