Saudi dentists receive U.S. patent for novel soft tissue augmentation technique

From Dental Tribune International – March 7, 2012 – Daniel Zimmerman

ALEXANDRIA, Va., USA: An invention from Saudi Arabia that could help more patients to get dental implants is reported to have granted patent status by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The new method, called tunneling technigue, is said to increase thickness of soft tissue before block grafting procedures using an acellular dermal matrix. Developed by implant specialist Dr Ali Thafeed Al-Ghamdi, who is also head of the Periodontic Division at the King Abdulaziz University’s Faculty of Dentistry in Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, the technique was first filed for patent application in February last year by a Virginia law firm. In the paper, the researchers explain how to position an acellular dermal matrix over the recipients site and fix it coronally via a tunnel that is formed by cutting a pair of incisions through the mucosa. Using this method, the researchers detected an increase of soft tissue thickness of 1-2 millimeters following allocrafts. Acellular dermal matrix is successfully applied in many surgical fields including cosmetic prodecures and regenerative medicine. It has been on the market since the early 1990s. Dr Al-Ghamdi told the Saudi Press Agency in Riyadh that he started looking into the technique when he noticed fast healing in dental implant patients who were treated with allografts for soft tissue augmentation prior to symphyseal block grafts. He said that his invention could significantly contribute to the improvement of block graft surgery in diseased jaws. According to latest research, thin soft tissue biotypes significantly affect implant success by failing to maintain required crestal bone level. Double click images.

 

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