What is a sinus lift?
A Sinus lift is a procedure whereby we raise the sinus floor and add bone and grafting material to give us more vertical bone height for Implant placement.
Reasons for a sinus lift
A key aspect of successful implant placement is the quality and quantity of bone available to place the implant. The upper (maxilla) jaw, towards the rear, is notoriously difficult to place implants in due to the lack of bone height beneath the sinus. By increasing the bone height beneath the sinus we are creating the height we require to achieve a successful implant placement.
Procedure
Sinus lifts take approximately 1 hour and can be done in the chair under local anaesthetic or under IV sedation at South Bank Day Surgery or in the chair with an anaesthetist present. A flap is raised to expose the bone towards the rear of the mouth and a small “window” is made in the bone for access. The sinus floor is gently lifted and the space underneath filled with bone and grafting material. Finally, the incision is resealed with sutures and healing begins. A waiting period of between 4-12 months is required to give the bone time to develop before considering the implant placement. Minimal discomfort is usually experienced by patients after this procedure.