Mandibular atrophy and metabolic bone loss.

Radiological studies were performed on edentulous patients with and without atrophy of the mandible. Radiological, histomorphometrical and endocrinological studies were performed in edentulous patients with a severe atrophy of the mandible treated by ridge augmentation. The results of these studies showed that metabolic bone loss, histologically and endocrinologically characterized as a secondary hyperfunction of the parathyroid glands, is a causal factor in the pathogenesis of mandibular atrophy.