An alveoplasty also aims to facilitate the healing procedure as well as the successful placement of a future prosthetic restoration. Faster healing is important for certain people, such as cancer patients. They may need to have decayed teeth extracted before they receive radiation therapy to the head or neck. Radiation can ‘dry up’ the salivary glands and reduce blood flow to the jaw, increasing the risk of further decay and infection of the jaw bones (osteo-radio- necrosis). Once the teeth are removed, radiation therapy cannot begin until the sockets are healed. Alveoplasty will help the area heal faster so therapy is not delayed. In this case, alveoplasty may need to be done even if only a single tooth is removed. An alveoplasty can be ‘simple’ and can be slightly more involved (radical, inter-radicular / inter-septal).
