Socket Shield Technique – A Review

Abstract

The post-extraction alveolar ridge resorption phenomenon is widely acknowledged globally, presenting a challenge in addressing the three-dimensional (3D) loss of hard and soft tissues. Because tooth extraction eliminates the alveo-dental ligament and its vascular supply, which mainly provides the tooth's alveolar bone proper, it results in the resorption of the alveolar ridge. The separation of the PDL after tooth extraction alters the blood supply to the alveolar bone proper, changing the structure of the bone. Both soft and hard tissues gradually disappear surrounding the extraction site as a result of this procedure (1). Studies, such as those by Pitrokovski and Massler in 1967 and Lindhe in 2005, suggest that this resorption is more pronounced on the buccal aspect than on the lingual aspect of the extraction socket (2).