[Augmentation of alveolar process with hydroxylapatite--clinical orthodontic experience]

23 Patients were followed up clinically and by X-ray. In this cohort eight maxillary and 19 mandibular alveolar bone augmentations with hydroxylapatite granules mostly in a subperiosteal tunnelling procedure had been done. In most cases prothetic treatment was administered in our hospital. The dentures had been in place for a little over three years. Over this period of time there was hardly any change in the shape of the augmented ridges, denture retention, and vertical dimension. Drawbacks of the procedure became evident as reduced load resistance of oral mucosa during mastication and recurring impingement spots. In some cases, particularly when there was little vertical bone height, pain occurred in the area of the mental nerve.