Zygomatic implants, also known as Zygoma implants, are designed for patients who are in need for dental implants, but the procedure cannot be carried owing to severe bone erosion in the upper jaw. This type of implants negates the need for bone grafting (bone augmentation). The major difference between Dental Implants and Zygomatic Implants is that in case of former, implants are placed directly into the jaws to replace teeth); in case of the latter, implant is placed directly into the zygomatic bone (cheekbone), where its job is to offer support to upper jaw, bridges and dentures.
What if your dentist feels that you need implants, but the procedure cannot be performed because of lack of bone density in your upper jaw? You may feel that everything is lost and there is no way you can have implants. Under such circumstances, doctors will recommend zygoma implants to reconstruct the upper teeth.
Bone Atrophy
Also known as resorption, bone atrophy refers to the loss in bone density owing to cell degeneration. It happens naturally after a tooth is extracted, and the condition may become more problematic with the passage of time if a person with dentures. As such, patients with atrophy of the jaw, or if they have worn dentures for over a period of time, may not the required quality or bone density to carry out normal dental implants.
Upper Jaw (maxillary) Bone Volume Loss
This condition may arise may occur as a result of bone resorption. This is a condition that normally occurs because of missing teeth, and as such there is no stress transmitted to the bone mass to maintain requisite bone density. This could also happen because of pneumatization of the maxillary sinus, a condition in which the air volume of the sinus increases accompanied by decreasing bone volume.
Alternatively, bone grafting procedures can be used but its primary disadvantage is the lengthy recuperating and recovering time. Moreover, dentures need to be placed for the time period the bone graft is healing. Also, sometimes the grafting fails resulting in more pain and swelling.
Source: https://simpladentclinics.com/
