Maxillary sinus augmentation with autogenous tibial bone graft as an in-office procedure

This retrospective study evaluates the efficacy of maxillary sinus grafting using autologous tibial bone in an outpatient setting. Twenty-seven patients undergoing lateral proximal tibial bone graft with subsequent sinus lifts were involved in this study. All surgeries were performed by the same surgeon in a private practice setting. A total of 28 tibial bone grafts and sinus lifts were performed on 27 patients. All subjects had minimal morbidity without any major complications. At the 1-year follow-up all implants that were placed into the grafted sites maintained stability, and no implants were lost. Two patients complained of hypertrophic scars at the site of bone harvesting (7.4%). One patient complained of leg pain for 10 weeks after the procedure, which resolved completely (2.7%). Overall complication rate was 10.1%. We conclude that the surgical harvesting of proximal tibial bone is associated with a low incidence of overall complications, mild postoperative pain, relative ease of harvest, minimal operative time, immediate ambulation, and rapid recovery, which make it an ideal office procedure when a significant amount of corticocancellous bone is required for maxillary sinus grafting.