Successful Ridge Augmentation : The Challenge of Periodontal Tissue Engineering

Dental implants for tooth replacement are the current standard of care for the replacement of missing teeth [1]. This is the result of 50 years of ongoing and continual research and development of new and improved surgical techniques and armamentarium. The long-term success of dental implants depends upon the degree of osseointegration that can be achieved [2-4], which is largely determined by the volume and quality of bone available at the time of surgery and the minimization of mechanical forces on the bone over the life span of the prosthesis. Bone height and volume is often diminished in patients due to the extended time after tooth loss prior to implant placement or due to periodontal disease and or trauma [5,6]. This lack of sufficient bone height and volume is the major limitation impacting long term dental implant treatment success [5,7].