Bone block from lateral window - correcting vertical and horizontal bone deficiency in maxilla posterior site: A case...

Lateral window approach for sinus floor lift is commonly used for vertical bone augmentation in cases when the residual bone height is less than 5 mm. However, managing cases becomes more challenging when a maxillary sinus pseudocyst is present or when there is insufficient bone width. In this case, we utilized the bone window prepared during the lateral window sinus lift as a shell for horizontal bone augmentation. This allowed for simultaneous horizontal and vertical bone augmentation immediately after the removal of the maxillary sinus pseudocyst.

A 28-year-old female presented to our clinic with the chief complaint of missing upper left posterior teeth. Intraoral examination showed a horizontal deficiency of the alveolar ridge contour. The height of the alveolar bone was approximately 3.6 mm on cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). And a typical well-defined 'dome-shaped' lesion in maxillary sinus was observed on CBCT imaging. The lateral bony window was prepared using a piezo-ultrasonic device, then the bony window was fixed to the buccal side of the 26 alveolar ridge using a titanium screw with a length of 10 mm and a diameter of 1.5 mm. The space between the bony window and the alveolar ridge was filled with Bio-Oss, covered with a Bio-Gide collagen membrane, and subsequently sutured. Nine months later, the patient's bone width increased from 4.8 to 10.5 mm, and the bone height increased from 3.6 to 15.6 mm. Subsequently, a Straumann^® 4.1 mm × 10 mm implant was placed. The final all-ceramic crown restoration was completed four months later, and both clinical and radiographic examinations showed that the implant was successful, and the patient was satisfied with the results.

The bone block harvested from the lateral window sinus lift can be used for simultaneous horizontal bone augmentation acting as a shell for good two-dimensional bone augmentation.