Dental Bridges
Dental Health Associates may recommend a dental bridge to you if you have missing teeth and have good oral hygiene practices. This dental bridge will permanently fill the gaps left by missing teeth with new, natural-looking artificial white teeth, and will ultimately prohibit the surrounding teeth from drifting out of position.
As the name suggests, dental bridges are held on by crowns placed over the teeth on both sides of the gap, creating a dental bridge. There are three main types of dental bridges: Traditional bridges, which involve creating a crown for the tooth or implant on either side of the missing tooth, with a pontic, or replacement tooth, in between – these are the most common type of bridge and are made of either porcelain fused to metal or ceramics, Cantilever bridges, which are used when there are adjacent teeth on only one side of the missing tooth or teeth, and finally Maryland bonded bridges (also called a resin-bonded bridge or a Maryland bridge), which are made of plastic teeth and gums supported by a metal framework. Metal wings on each side of the bridge are bonded to your existing teeth.
Installing a dental bridge is referred to as 'fixed' dentistry, virtually leaving them indistinguishable from your natural teeth!
Some of the advantages of dental bridges include:
- The ability to speak and chew properly
- Increased biting strength
- A restored smile!
- Maintaining the shape of your face
- Prevent remaining teeth from drifting out of position
- Prevent tooth decay and gum disease
- Prevent temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders
Our Toledo dentists are so committed to high-quality crown, veneer, and bridge restorations that we have our own in-house dental lab staffed with dental ceramists who ensure that your porcelain restorations are all perfectly matched to your individual smile.
