Sinus lift through the use of a surgical guide: a case report

Aim: Sinus lift is a common procedure to achieve bone height in the maxillary posterior region. This surgery can be performed through either a lateral or crestal approach. Preoperative planning usually entails CBCT and intraoperative evaluation at the time of surgery. This article presents a case in which a surgical guide was made by digitally planning for the performance of a sinus lift procedure through a lateral approach.
Case presentation: A 59-year-old partially edentulous female patient underwent sinus lift surgery using a stereolithographic guide designed in NemoStudio software and printed using clear, biocompatible MED610. On the day of surgery, the bone guide was fixed with pins, and the lateral window was made by piezoelectric surgery. There were no intraoperative or postoperative incidents.
Discussion: There are very few descriptions in the literature of the use of surgical guides for sinus lift. In this case, the advantages of its use were the precision in the performance of the window, the speed and comfort of access, and the retractor effect of the guide on the flap. The main drawback was the need to raise a wide flap to achieve good settlement of the guide.
Conclusion: The present case, which presents an innovative technique for the opening of the lateral window in a sinus lift procedure, is interesting for the advancement of computer-guided surgery.