Alveolar Augmentation: Focus on Growth Factors (BMPs)

Abstract

Surgical placement of dental implants is governed by the prosthetic design and the morphology and quality of the alveolar bone. Often, implant placement may be difficult, if at all possible, due to alveolar ridge aberrations. In consequence, prosthetically dictated implant positioning commonly entails bone augmentation procedures. We herein discuss the unique biologic potential, the clinical relevance, and perspectives of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) technologies (focus on rhBMP-2) for alveolar bone augmentation. We also address merits and short-comings of current treatment protocol including bone biomaterials and guided bone regeneration (GBR). In perspective, our studies suggest that BMPs have an unparalleled, dose-dependent potential to augment alveolar bone and in turn support dental implant fixation and functional loading. Inclusion of BMPs for alveolar augmentation to facilitate dental implant fixation may thus not only enhance predictability of existing clinical protocol but radically change current treatment paradigms making conventional "grafting" and GBR procedures altogether obsolete.