Defect augmentation is a term often used in dentistry. It refers to various methods of building up bone to correct defects in the jaw.

Bone defects in the jaw can have many different causes. For example, removal of a cyst can result in a so-called „solitary bone defect“. The animation shows a hole in the bone right after the removal of a cyst, which usually fills up with blood, which later turns into bone. But if a cyst is too big, then this process does not work as well, since the blood contracts – and the larger the defect, the smaller the blood clot that forms. If the defect is really big, then the blood clot may shrink to the extent that it has no more contact to the bone, and conversion of blood to bone is no longer possible – this results in a bone defect. These bone defects make implanting difficult, moreover, these defects can cause pain, especially if the holes in the bone are very big.

To avoid this type of complication, larger bone defects, as shown here in the animation, need to be filled up with bone replacement material immediately after removal of the cyst. This prevents the blood clot from shrinking – one example of defect augmentation.

One other example of defect augmentation is for loss of bone due to parodontitis. Here you can see a tooth with a slight recession in the bone, isolated defects of this sort can be corrected using bone replacement material. The membrane is flipped open, bone replacement material is inserted and the wound is sewn up. Over the course of several weeks the material in this area turns into bone. This is yet another example of defect augmentation, in this case not in order to create a base for an implant, but to treat a tooth.

The film shows an example of defect augmentation after removal of a cyst, the gum tissue has already been opened, a small opening has been cut into the bone and the cyst removed. Here you can see the hole in the bone slowly filling with blood, after which bone replacement material is inserted into the defective area to aid the regeneration of the bone. Since the tissue lining the bone (periosteum) was not damaged during the operation, there is no need to insert a membrane as a connective tissue barrier. The periosteum is its own best protection, it prevents connective tissue from moving in, which ensures that the slower-growing bone cells are able to convert the defect into bone! The membrane is stitched up, and depending on the replacement material used and the size of the defect, bone forms again in 2 to 6 months.