Dimensional changes in the sinus membrane following maxillary sinus augmentation.
Mayer Y, Ben-Dor A, Zigdon-Giladi H, Gutmacher Z. Quintessence Int. 2018;49(10):841-847.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30264057

This retrospective clinical study aims to evaluate the dimensional changes of the Schneiderian membrane following maxillary sinus augmentation and to analyze the impact of the height of the bone grafting material.

Methods:
50 patients (66 sites) underwent lateral wall maxillary sinus augmentation using cerabone® and a collagen membrane. Sinus membrane thickness was measured prior to and 9 to 11 months post sinus augmentation using CBCT scans.

 Results:
– Following sinus augmentation, thin Schneiderian membranes (< 1.56 mm) thickened to a mean value of 2.89±2.33 mm (+ 482.55%), while thick membranes (> 1.56 mm) lost in thickness to a mean value of 3.10±4.45 mm (-29.84%)
– The postoperative thickness of thin and thick membranes leveled off (2.89±2.3 and 3.10±4.4 mm, respectively)
– No correlation was found between the graft height and changes in the sinus membrane thickness

 Conclusions:
Maxillary sinus floor augmentation is a safe procedure in terms of sinus membrane thickness. It seems that the membranes thickness at baseline affects the subsequent dimensional changes. The amount of bone grafting material used may not affect the thickness of the membrane.

Yaniv Mayer