[Bone regeneration induced by stem cells--recent research and future outlook].

Alveolar bone resorption is the consequence of periodontal diseases, trauma or malignancies. Regeneration of the lost bone is crucial for the patient rehabilitation of function, phonetics and aesthetics. The surgical techniques for jaw-bone augmentation include: distraction osteogenesis, bone blocks (autologic/allogenic or xenogenic) and guided bone regeneration (GBR). These techniques have low predictability and high morbidity. As an alternative to the classical surgical approaches, in recent years, there have been developments in the field of tissue engineering which integrates the use of different scaffolds, growth factors and stem cells. This method aims to induce bone augmentation of large defects essentially mimicking biological processes that occure during craniofacial development. This article will review recent studies and a future outlook for the use of adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) and endothelial progenitor cells (EPC)--in order to induce bone augmentation in cases of severe bone resorption. Regenerative therapy using stem cells may open a new horizon in periodontology, maxillofacial surgery and implantology.