On average, American adults between the ages of 20 and 64 years old have about three missing or decayed teeth. If you’re suffering from this common dental problem, dental bridges can replace your missing teeth and improve your mouth’s appearance. To find out how a dental bridge can restore your smile and oral health, call or make an appointment online today with Dr. Daniel B. Mendoza in Redwood City, California.
Sometimes referred to as a fixed partial denture, a dental bridge replaces your missing teeth with artificial ones to literally “bridge” the gap where your teeth were.
A typical dental bridge consists of two crowns, placed on both sides of the gap, and a false tooth that fills the gap. Dr. Mendoza refers to the natural teeth or dental implants that anchor your bridge as abutment teeth and the prosthetics in between as pontics.
Bridges are made from gold, alloys, porcelain, or a combination of these materials.
As an expert in the field, Dr. Mendoza not only offers several types of bridges to his patients, he also teaches these techniques as a professor at UCSF. The four most common types of bridges are:
As the most popular kind of bridge, traditional dental bridges consist of at least one prosthetic that gets held in place with dental crowns. These dental crowns get cemented onto the teeth adjacent to the missing one. To do so, Dr. Mendoza needs to remove the enamel from your natural teeth to make room for the crowns.
While similar to traditional bridges, cantilever bridges only get supported by an abutment on one side, making it so that if you only have one natural tooth next to the gap, your bridge is still secured.
As a conservative alternative to traditional bridges, Maryland bridges have a pontic held in place with metal or porcelain framework. Dr. Mendoza bonds the structure to the backs of the teeth adjacent to the one you’re missing. Since crowns don’t hold this type of bridge in place, no filing is needed.
Implant-supported bridges get supported by dental implants. Dr. Mendoza places one implant for every missing tooth. The implants hold your bridge in place.
The success of the bridge depends on the solid foundation of your surrounding teeth. Therefore, after Dr. Mendoza completes your bridge, it’s important to keep your remaining teeth healthy and strong.
Continue brushing them twice a day and flossing daily to help prevent the tooth decay and gum disease which often leads to tooth loss. Also, keep a regular professional cleaning schedule to enable Dr. Mendoza to find your dental problems early for more successful treatment.