Two case reports describing a new technique of creating a repositionable piezoelectric bony window osteotomy during apicoectomy in order to preserve bone and act as an autologous graft for the surgical site are described. Endodontic microsurgery of anterior teeth with an intact cortical plate and large periapical lesion generally involves removal of a significant amount of healthy bone in order to enucleate the diseased tissue and manage root ends. In the reported cases, apicoectomy was performed on the lateral incisors of two patients. A piezoelectric device was used to create and elevate a bony window at the surgical site, instead of drilling and destroying bone while making an osteotomy with conventional burs. Routine microsurgical procedures - lesion enucleation, root-end resection, and filling - were carried out through this window preparation. The bony window was repositioned to the original site and the soft tissue sutured. The cases were re-evaluated clinically and radiographically after a period of 12 - 24 months. At follow-up, radiographic healing was observed. No additional grafting material was needed despite the extent of the lesions. The indication for this procedure is when teeth present with an intact or near-intact buccal cortical plate and a large apical lesion to preserve the bone and use it as an autologous graft.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.