<title>Ridge augmentation with soft tissue procedures in aesthetic dentistry: pre- and postoperative volume measurements with a new kind of moire technique</title>

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to measure the volume differences of operated alveolar ridge defects before and until 3 months post-surgically. Ten patients with ten localized alveolar ridge defects were operated on. Five alveolar ridge defects were corrected by using the full thickness onlay graft technique and the other five defects were operated by the subepithelial connective tissue graft technique. A strict standardized operation protocol was followed and all alveolar ridge defects were operated on by the same dental surgeon. Before as well as 1, 2, and 3 months after surgery the corrected defect was photographed and an impression was made by using an A-silicon material to produce a gypsum-cast model. The form of all these cast models was then measured using the moire technique. The three months result of ten cases shows that the form of the operated alveolar ridge defects, which were corrected by the subepithelial connective tissue graft technique are more stable compared to those which were operated on by the full thickness onlay graft technique. Localized alveolar ridge defects using the latter method does not show a form stability after 3 months post-surgically.