Osseous Surgery and guided tissue regeneration

When the level of periodontal disease becomes moderate or severe, the depths of the pockets around the teeth become very deep.  It may be difficult for Dr. Meltzer and Dr. Kang to clean the area thoroughly in these situations. Patients can seldom, if ever, keep these pockets clean and free of plaque. Consequently, surgery may be needed to restore periodontal health.

Osseous surgery allows for the complete removal of subgingival calculus and plaque that would otherwise be impossible to remove through non-surgical methods.  In the presence of periodontal disease, the bone around the teeth deteriorate and infected tissue forms around the roots.  Osseous surgery involves the removal of this diseased tissue, as well as reshaping of abnormal areas of bone that create unmaintainable defects around the teeth.  Oftentimes, bone can also be regenerated with bone grafting procedures and the use of growth factors in conjunction with osseous surgery.

Despite the word “surgery” the procedure is reported to feel more like a thorough cleaning.  The procedure is almost always done with local anesthesia, nearly identical to a scaling and root planing procedure.  Dissolvable stitches are used after the surgery.  The recovery is very quick, and nearly all patients are able to function completely normal on the day of and day after the surgery.