Dental Bridge
Hobe Sound, FL
Our dedicated team at is regularly on stand-by to help you achieve that perfect smile. Just like the name suggests, bridges are a great way to fill in a gap left by a missing tooth. Also referred to as a pontic or false tooth, a dental bridge is cemented into place by attaching to what is known as abutment teeth on both sides of the opening (gap).
Pontics are crafted from a variety of substances including alloy, gold, and porcelain. They may also be made from a combination of two or more of these materials. They are designed to resemble your actual teeth in such a way that someone may not make a distinction between them.
Types of Bridges
Bridges are often supported by dental implants or natural teeth. They come in three main types, namely traditional, cantilever, and Maryland bonded. Traditional bridges encompass the creation of crowns for an implant or tooth on either side of a missing tooth and a pontic separating them. Traditional bridges are popular with many people, often made from ceramics or porcelain that has some metal fused into it.
Cantilever bridges are commonly used when adjacent teeth exist only on one side of the missing tooth. It is not a common method and not viable for the back of mouth as it often places undue pressure on the rest of the natural teeth, sometimes even damaging them.
Maryland Bonded bridges are also referred to as standby bridges. They are comprised of a framework of metal or porcelain bonded to the back of abutment tooth. This method is only applicable to someone when there are natural teeth on both sides of the gap that has a missing tooth.
Advantages of Dental Bridges
Bridges have numerous benefits. Apart from restoring your smile, they are also a popular way of fixing your ability to smile and even chew properly. When properly fixed, bridges have the capability to reconstruct the shape of the face. Bridges act like anchors for remaining teeth by preventing them from shifting out of position. Through bridges, the force of biting is well distributed.
The Procedure for Dental Bridges
When you visit our dentist office for the first time, you will have the abutment teeth prepared. This involves recontouring through removal of part of the enamel. It is done to create space for crowns to be placed over the tooth. Impressions are then made. These are models of the exact teeth from which crowns, pontic, and bridges will be designed at the dental lab. To protect the exposed tooth, our office dentist will then make a temporary bridge while the actual one is still being designed at the lab.
When you visit our office dentist the second time, you will have the temporary bridge removed and the actual bridge fixed in its place. It is then adjusted until a proper fit is achieved. You will be making regular visits to our office for checks aimed at ensuring the fit of the metal framework as well as the bite. When satisfied everything is fine, our dentist will then cement it into place.
Restoring a full smile is desirable for the sake of appearance and oral health. To find out if this is a viable option for you, get in touch with us for more information regarding bridges. Contact us, DiMeo Family Dental at (772) 266-0962 today. |
