You’ve finally done it. You didn’t mean for it to happen, but it has.
You have lost a couple teeth, and now your smile is … well … it’s not what it used to be.
Truth be told, you may be a little embarrassed. You didn’t take care of your teeth like you should have, and it finally caught up to you.
What should you do? Should you just accept it as a kind of self-punishment for neglecting to do what you should have? We don’t think so.
At Bayou Dental Group, we think every smile deserves a second chance, including yours. With a dental bridge, your smile can look as good as it ever did (and maybe a little better).
If you live in or near Monroe, LA, you owe it to yourself and your mouth to find out how our dentist can help.
A Bridge To Your New Smile
The best case scenario for all our patients is to keep all their teeth all their lives. Very few patients are able to achieve this, however.
A full set of teeth has 32 teeth. Even if you had your wisdom teeth removed, you would still have 28 teeth. According to the National Institutes of Health, the average American adult has 25 teeth. This should give you an idea how common tooth loss is in the United States.
We mention this so you know that you aren’t alone. Indeed, tooth loss and tooth replacement are far from new. Ancient civilizations used ivory, rocks, and seashells among other things to replace lost or missing teeth.
Over the centuries, we have developed new dental procedures and new materials to replace missing teeth. You are the beneficiary of centuries of research and development for some of the best teeth replacement options ever devised.
Today, you can get a dental bridge that looks, feels, and functions like your real teeth.
Built To Last
When engineers design a bridge, they know that it needs to last for a long, long time. They know the bridges that they design will receive a lot of use, and those bridges must be able to withstand what they will experience during their most heavily trafficked times.
In a way, dental bridges are the same. They have to be able to withstand high-use periods (when you are eating) so they will look their best when needed (like when you are smiling for a picture).
Just as bridges can be built in different ways with different materials, some dental bridges are sturdier than others.
Implant-supported bridges are your strongest option.
For someone who is missing a couple teeth, this can be an excellent choice. We can place one or two implants into your jaw. The implants provide the support for the bridge and hold it securely in place.
Because the dental implants are embedded in your jaw, they also provide the kind of stimulation your jawbone needs to remain healthy and strong.
Traditional Structure
The alternative to an implant-supported bridge is a traditional bridge. To understand how we make a traditional bridge, we need to explain how we make a dental crown.
Typically, we design dental crowns for individuals who have a damaged tooth. By removing the damaged areas, we created an abutment to support the dental crown.
Dental bridges are made by fusing multiple dental crowns together. A traditional bridge has two abutment crowns (one on either end) to provide support.
To bond this kind of bridge in place, we have to reshape the two teeth on either side of your missing teeth. The abutment crowns are bonded in place while the other crowns (called pontics) fill in the vacant space in your smile.
One downside to this kind of bridge is there is nothing under the crowns in the middle. This means there is nothing to provide stimulation to that part of your jaw, either.
Get Back Your Smile
There’s an old saying that “you can’t go home again.” We don’t know how true that really is, but we do know that our patients can reclaim their smiles again at Bayou Dental Group.
If you are missing a few teeth, find out how a dental bridge could help you. Missing teeth have a way of leading to more problems. Finding the right replacement option often can nip those problems in the bud.
If you would like to learn more about dental bridges, contact our dentist office in Monroe, LA. You can reach us by filling out our online form or by calling 318-323-9303.