Socket grafting: a predictable technique for site preservation

The demand for dental implants continues to rise worldwide, requiring clinicians to consider the incorporation of bone preservation procedures into their dental practice. Socket grafting offers a predictable, simple way to conserve the buccolingual and mesiodistal dimensions of the future implant site. Careful bone management and the use of various bone-grafting materials must be part of the practice of every implantologist. In this case report, the authors present a fundamental technique for socket grafting and 3 cases of site preservation with subsequent implant placement and restoration. Emphasis is placed on the evidence-based rationale for this procedure, the clinical technique, and the various grafting materials that can be employed by the clinician.