Comparison of Intraoral Harvest Sites for Corticocancellous Bone Grafts

Abstract

The aim of this study is to quantify and compare the amount of bone that can be harvested from the mandibular symphysis, ascending ramus/body, coronoid process, and the zygomatic-maxillary buttress using a within-subject study design. Three continuous outcomes (area, thickness, and volume) were measured at 4sites (zygomatic-maxillary buttress symphysis, ramus, coronoid) from each of the 59 cadavers used in this study. The explanatory variables were age, gender, and site. To account for the within-subject research design, a linear mixed-effects model was performed separately for each of the 3 outcomes to compare the sites controlling for age and gender. Level of significance was set at 0.05. For all 3 outcomes, there was a statistically significant difference among the average values of the 4 sites (P < 0.0001). The ramus had the highest average cortical bone area and volume harvested, while the symphysis had the highest average thickness. The characteristics among different potential intraoral donor sites vary greatly regarding thickness, volume, and cortical surface area. Using the estimates of the various yields derived from these grafts, a surgeon will be more adequately equipped to confront the reconstructive challenges of the maxillofacial region.