Alveolar Bone Dynamism: Health and Disease

The alveolar bone is the portion of the maxilla and mandible that forms and supports the tooth socket (alveoli) which develops in conjunction with the development and eruption of the teeth. Alveolar bone constantly undergoes modelling and remodelling processes which is major pathway of bony changes in shape. Loss of alveolar bone occurs following trauma and in¿ammation associated with periodontal disease. The initial response to bacterial infection is a local in¿ammatory reaction, ampli¿cation of this initial localized response results in the release of an array of cytokines and other mediators leading to RANK and RANK-L induced osteoclast differentiation leading to alveolar bone loss. Preventing or minimizing this loss is a major clinical objective in dentistry, and restoration of alveolar bone mass after losses is an extremely difficult task to attain. This book is an insight to understand development of alveolar bone and how it relates to function which is fundamental for understanding the disease process, and for devising effective therapeutic strategies, particularly in the case where tissue destruction, and hence a concomitant loss of function, ensues.