When you find yourself with one or more missing teeth, the health and beauty of your smile could suffer. To fill these gaps and restore the beauty of your smile, we could recommend a dental bridge. In today’s blog, your Celina, TX, dentist explains the benefits of traditional bridges and our implant option.
The Risks Posed by Minor Tooth Loss
Even losing one tooth could lead to problem for your oral health. For example, the gap could enable nearby teeth to drift from position, causing dental misalignment. The changes to your bite balance could also strain the jaw joints, increasing the risk of complications like TMJ disorder and bruxism (chronic teeth grinding). Since the missing root causes the body to suspend the flow of calcium and phosphorus to the surrounding jawbone, the tissue could break down, losing mass and density. As a result, further tooth loss is possible with time. Not to mention the complications tooth loss could cause for speaking and eating.
The Crown-Secured Option
To fill the gap in your smile, you should seek treatment with a dental prosthetic. A bridge replaces between one to three missing teeth in a row. For the traditional option, we remove structure from the natural teeth on either side of the gap, which we refer to as abutment teeth. We then take detailed impressions and images with digital technology. In a dental lab, this information lets us design and craft a durable and lifelike dental prosthetic.
The bridge consists of new teeth, known as pontics, with crowns attached to either end. The crowns will be attached to the abutment teeth, securing the pontics firmly in place. They last about 10 to 15 years on average, requiring replacement as the jaw ridge changes shape.
An Implant Alternative
However, we could also support them with dental implants. Instead of removing structure from natural teeth, we insert dental implants into the jaw and then attach the crown portions of the bridge to them with an abutment. This preserves natural tooth structure, and the implants are recognized as natural roots by the body. This stimulates the growth of jawbone tissue to prevent the loss of mass and density, and keep the smile whole. Your new prosthetic could then stay in place for decades to come, possibly even a lifetime. If you have any questions about addressing tooth loss with a dental prosthetic, then contact our team today to learn more.
Talk To Your Celina, TX Dentist’s Office About Replacing Lost Teeth
We want to help replace your missing teeth with a dental prosthetic. We also have full and partial dentures. To learn more about our lifelike and durable dental prosthetics, then contact your Celina, TX, dentist, Dr. Newton, by calling (214) 851-0130.
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