Abstract
PURPOSE: The crestal sinus lifting by means of hydraulic technique associated with a nano-cristalline hydroxyapatite in an aqueous medium is investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A specific purpose-made instrument is used, consisting of a syringe with a micrometrically controlled piston connected to a dispenser used to inject, in a calibrated and precise manner, noted volumes of graft material into the sub-schneiderian space. Adopting such a technique the Authors performed 7 future site developments, on 7 patients (2 males; 5 females; mean age 49.29±8.08 years), using a nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite. In the second stage, performed at 5.71±1.52 months, 7 implants were placed, after harvesting bone biopsies from the regenerated sites. The samples underwent histological and histomorphometric analysis. RESULTS: The average percentage of vital bone was of 33.27±5.98%, while the bone marrow and graft material were 60.84±5.93% and 5.87±3.05%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirm the effectiveness of this method in restoring bone volume in the sub-antral region. Furthermore nano-cristalline hydroxyapatite is a proper material for sinus floor augmentation.