After asking for prayers on facebook for Trav's surgery this past Tuesday many friends and family were naturally curious as to what he was having done. I am sorry it has taken me so long to do this but I figured it would be easier to just blog about it.
Travis has had extensive dental work done since joining the Army. It has been interrupted several times due to deployment. In Virginia he was able to have quite a few procedures done without the interruptions. He had to have a few molars pulled which left him with a large space in his mouth. This can cause all his teeth to eventually shift, leaving gaps. The next step was to have implants put in. Since we didn't have enough time left to do this in Virginia he has started the process here in Hawaii. This process will take approximately 1 1/2 to 2 years to complete. The first step was to raise his sinus cavity. There needs to be a certain thickness of bone to place the posts for the implants and Travis didn't have enough. This is where the surgery comes in. He had to have bone marrow removed from his leg and put into his sinus cavity. This required a 2 inch incision just under his knee to "scrape" out bone marrow. This was then placed in his sinus cavity. He has about a 1 inch incision in his gum line. If this "takes" it will be about a 6 month healing process and then they will put the metal posts for the implants in. They wanted to place the posts at the time of the surgery but they were not able to (I dont recall why). If this doesn't end up being thick enough there is a chance he will have to do this again.
Travis is doing well. He will be off work until May 3rd. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Please keep praying for healing and that he won't have to go through this procedure again!
Happy Easter to all!
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