Dental Implants Bone Graft — Cost & What to Expect

Why Is a Bone Graft Sometimes Needed?

A dental implant needs adequate bone to anchor securely. Bone begins to shrink and resorb after tooth loss — the longer the gap since extraction, the more bone may have been lost. Gum disease, injury and natural anatomy can also reduce available bone volume. Without enough bone, the implant has nothing solid to integrate into and will fail. A bone graft rebuilds the foundation.

Types of Bone Graft

• Autograft: bone taken from elsewhere in your own body (chin, shin, hip). Most effective but requires a second surgical site.
• Allograft: processed donor bone from a human donor (bone bank). No second surgical site; widely used and effective.
• Xenograft: processed animal bone (usually bovine). Very commonly used; lower cost.
• Alloplast: synthetic bone substitute. No donor material involved; increasingly sophisticated options available.

Sinus Lift — Upper Jaw

For implants in the upper back jaw, the maxillary sinus (an air cavity above the back teeth) can sit too close to the intended implant site. A sinus lift raises the sinus membrane and packs bone material beneath it to create the necessary height. This is a separate procedure, usually done 3–6 months before implant placement, costing £800–£2,500.

Does Bone Grafting Work?

When carried out by an experienced implantologist, bone graft success rates are high — over 90% of grafted sites provide sufficient volume for implant placement after healing. The All-on-4 technique was specifically designed to minimise the need for grafting by using angled implants that anchor in denser bone further back in the jaw.