Why Replace Missing Teeth With A Dental Bridge?

If you have a missing tooth, then you can replace it with some kind of false tooth. While some people go with a partial denture or an implant, a dental bridge is also an option here. How do bridges work and what are their benefits?

How Does A Dental Bridge Work?

A dental bridge fills the gap left by a missing tooth by using adjacent teeth as a support for a denture. This is a permanently-fixed solution.

To start with, your dentist will create a piece of bridgework. This denture device typically contains three crowns. The two side crowns go over the teeth at either side of the gap left by your missing tooth. The middle one goes in the missing tooth's gap.

To fix the bridge in place, your dentist has to reduce the size of the teeth on either side of the gap. They need to be smaller to fit into their crowns on the bridge. Your dentist then anchors and fixes the bridge to these teeth. Once the bridge has set into a secure position, it fills your gap.

What Are The Advantages Of Dental Bridges?

While other teeth replacement options help replace missing teeth, they do have some downsides. For example, if you use a partial denture, then you have to learn how to keep the denture in place in your mouth while you talk, eat, and drink. These devices aren't usually fixed in place.

As an alternative, you can have a dental implant. Here, your dentist inserts a post into the bone over the missing tooth. After the post heals into place, they put a crown on it to replace the tooth. This can take some months; it is also an expensive treatment.

Dental bridges have advantages that outweigh these disadvantages. For example, unlike a denture, a bridge is permanently fixed. It won't be uncomfortable. Once you get used to it being in your mouth, you'll stop noticing that it is there.

A bridge also makes it easier for you to eat. You get virtually full chewing functionality in the area on and around your gap.

Plus, dental bridges are a lot faster to make and fit than implants. They are also cheaper. You can fill your gap effectively even if you're on a budget.

To find out more about dental bridges and whether this is a viable way of replacing your missing tooth, talk to a dentist.