Dental Bridges – Enhance Your Smile

A bridge is one option for replacing one or more missing teeth. It is a permanent fixture anchored to the adjacent natural tooth or teeth (the abutment) to ‘bridge’ the gap where the tooth (or teeth) is missing (the pontic). This also prevents the adjacent natural teeth from drifting.

A bridge is a great option if you do not wish to have dental implants or a denture to replace your missing tooth or teeth. Many different designs and materials can be used for bridges; your dentist will discuss the best option for you.

Each bridge is individually handcrafted by our dental technician to create a healthy, natural look that also sits comfortably with your bite.

Preparation & Process

There are several types of bridges

 

Cantilever Bridge –This is a bridge with one false tooth or ‘pontic’ attached to one crown, ‘the abutment.’

Fixed- Fixed Bridge – Generally consists of three crowns joined together, one at each end covering your natural teeth and a crown in the middle, which replaces your missing tooth.- Some bridges maybe four, five or even more crowns joined together, designed to replace more than one of your missing teeth

Adhesive Bridge – This bridge has a false tooth (the pontic) to which a metal or tooth-coloured ‘wing’ is attached to a natural tooth on either side of the missing tooth. This type of bridge can have one or two wings.

Dental bridges can be made using the following materials – all-metal (often gold) or tooth-coloured bridges such as porcelain fused to metal (often gold or a gold alloy), full ceramic (porcelain) or composite (plastic with glass particles embedded). The material used will depend on why you are having the bridge.

Two appointments are necessary:

The first is to prepare the tooth for the bridge abutments, and the second is to fit your bridge.

The preparation appointment

• A local anaesthetic may be needed to numb the tooth and surrounding gum
• The dentist will then shape the tooth’s outer surfaces, creating a cylindrical shape onto which the bridge will sit.
• An impression (mould) is taken of your teeth using special dental “putty”. The putty is placed into an impression tray, then inserted into your mouth and pushed onto your teeth to take an impression. Once the dental putty is set, the impression will be removed. An impression is also taken of the opposing teeth so the technician can see how you bite together.
• A temporary crown will be cemented onto the prepared tooth to protect it whilst your bridge is being fabricated.
• The impressions will be sent to the dental laboratory where our technician will handcraft your dental bridge. This will take between two and three weeks.

The “Fitting” Appointment

• A local anaesthetic may be needed to numb the tooth and surrounding gum
• The temporary crown will be removed, and the tooth will be washed to remove the temporary cement.
• The dentist will then try your new bridge, ensuring it fits correctly and you are happy with the appearance. The bridge will then be permanently cemented in place.