When you lose some teeth due to pre-existing dental conditions, you may face difficulties eating or presenting yourself to others because of the gaps. Based on this, you are also likely to experience reduced confidence in your overall appearance, creating a ripple effect on your quality of life. Thus, seeking dental treatment for dental bridges is an excellent option that helps you close the teeth gaps without compromising your well-being.

By working with an experienced dentist, you can expect high-quality services tailored to meet your needs and provide the best results for your case. Additionally, a skilled dentist will treat any other underlying issues that may compromise the success of dental bridge installation. Therefore, you can look forward to satisfactory services.

What Dental Bridges Are

Dental bridges combine three elements to replicate your removed tooth or teeth. They close gaps left from teeth removal, helping you restore your natural look and regain normal teeth function.

Notably, a dental bridge may comprise two or more crowns, depending on the number of teeth you have lost. Therefore, their appearance may vary based on the most suitable treatment process that your dentist recommends.

Typically, a dental bridge will include two teeth, often called abutment teeth, on both sides of the gap. Your dentist places them here to provide support before installing the crown or false tooth to fill the crown and provide a natural-looking tooth.

Abutment teeth may come from natural teeth, as dentists do not have to implant synthetic ones for a single gap. Nonetheless, they will shape your existing natural teeth to help them accommodate the false tooth that anchors the dental bridge to your gums.

Apart from the two abutment teeth, the dental bridge holds the false tooth that closes the tooth gap. Ideally, it will be in the middle because it should receive support from either side through the abutment teeth.

Overall, the organization of a complete dental bridge should ensure that the false crown closing the tooth gap is functional and does not move around. Your dentist will help anchor the tooth during the placement procedure, so you want to consult them for more information on your treatment.

Types of Dental Bridges

You can also choose the type of dental bridges to have fitted on your teeth, as they vary based on several factors. For example, you can choose between porcelain, metallic, or hard plastic dental bridges. On top of that, you can select the bridges based on functionality. The choices include:

  • Traditional dental bridges
  • Maryland bonded bridges
  • Cantilever bridges
  • Implant dental bridges

Each option has advantages for restoring your dental alignment; discussing them with your dentist will provide better insight into your best pick.

When to Have Dental Bridges Fixed

Since dental bridges close a tooth gap to help you continue with normal tooth function, you want to consider the treatment after losing one or more teeth. Multiple causes may result in tooth loss; some involve underlying medical conditions.

Therefore, you should consult your dentist for their recommendations on dental bridge treatment because it may not be effective for a severe dental condition. Nonetheless, learning about the common causes of tooth loss can give you insights on when to have a dental bridge placement procedure. Common problems include:

When You Have Tooth Decay

Tooth decay is a cavity that continuously erodes your healthy tooth enamel and pulp. The problem arises when bacteria attacks and spreads around your teeth, releasing corrosive chemicals that harm your healthy tooth parts.

Consequently, tooth decay requires your dentist to remove the affected tooth to prevent the infection from spreading to healthy teeth. Hence, you will have a tooth gap after the tooth removal procedure, requiring you to consider dental bridge placement.

When You Have Gum Disease

Gum diseases may stem from various problems, including bacterial infection and insufficient nutrients to strengthen your gums. Moreover, inadequate blood flow to your gums may also have a similar effect, along with medical conditions like diabetes.

While you may manage the condition using supplements, special toothpaste, and continuous dental treatment, extreme cases will most likely cause tooth loss. The increased chances of losing teeth are that the bond between the gums and roots of your teeth may have already weakened, meaning that continuous treatment is unlikely to reverse the damage.

Gum disease often affects many of your gums, so you will likely lose multiple teeth over time. Hence, a dental bridge placement procedure is suitable for patients in this situation, as it can restore their oral health. However, your dentist will only recommend the process if they are satisfied that your gums are healthy enough to support the bridges and implants.

When You Sustain Severe Injuries Resulting in Tooth Loss

You may also be prone to losing your teeth after a traumatic injury from an accident. If you play high-impact sports or were an accident victim, you may have lost several teeth from the incident. Notably, many patients who lose their teeth under these circumstances may have had the teeth break off, meaning that the root is still intact but injured.

Based on this, the dentist may need to undertake a pre-placement treatment to remove the remaining parts of the broken tooth/teeth. Doing so provides a clear working space when placing the dental bridge to prevent possible complications with the process.

Dental Bridges Installation Process

Upon determining that dental bridges are a suitable addition to your teeth, the first step is to visit your dentist for a consultation. They will review your teeth gaps and check your gum health before recommending an appropriate course of action.

Usually, your first consultation involves a physical examination for the dentist to familiarize yourself with your dental arrangement. They will also ask you for your medical history to establish the cause of your teeth loss. If they learn that you live with a terminal disease affecting your gums and teeth, they can recommend alternative, non-invasive ways to cover your gaps.

Conversely, if you can live with dental bridges without any chances of dental complications, your dentist will then undertake the subsequent preparation process.

What the Preparation Process Entails

The correct information before installation is crucial for your dentist, as the process requires high accuracy. Therefore, the preparation process mainly involves collecting information on your dental arrangement, including the dimensions between your gaps.

The dentist also benefits from checking the prevailing teeth shape to match your dental bridge crowns for a more natural appearance. Some important processes to undergo in preparation for a dental bridge fitting are:

Shaping Your Abutment Teeth

As mentioned, abutment teeth anchor the dental bridges by supporting the false crowns that your dentist places to fill the gap. The ideal placement requires abutment teeth to the left and right of the tooth gap your dentist intends to fill with a crown, so they should hold the crowns correctly.

You should remember that the abutment teeth may be from your surrounding natural teeth or artificially placed. With this in mind, the dentist will shape the abutment teeth to the correct measurement that perfectly accommodates the false crown.

 If the dentist intends to transform your natural teeth for support, they will sculpt them to the required shape and reduce the enamel surface area. It may also be necessary to remove your dentin for additional tooth reshaping.

On the other hand, if the dentist fits artificial abutment teeth, they will have already specified the required dimensions, so they will only need to fit them on your gums. Notably, fitting artificial abutment teeth may require an implant to provide extra support. Therefore, it is unlikely that the dentist will complete the full placement procedure in one session because the implants need time to adhere to the gums.

Making Teeth Impressions

Obtaining teeth impressions aims at replicating your dental structure for your dentist’s reference as they design a suitable dental bridge placement plan for you. Since you are not always available for review with your dentist, the impressions are important in helping your dentist check for the crucial teeth dimensions and shapes even after you leave the office.

Taking teeth impressions involves using a special dental mold and pressing it against your upper and lower jaw to replicate your teeth. Once the mold dries, it leaves a copy of your teeth in a hard clay-like form for your dentist to refer to. This is because the impressions will also capture the teeth gaps that require filling.

Temporary Bridge Placement

A tooth gap exposes your gums to many external factors, including hot and cold temperatures as you eat. Furthermore, you are more prone to bacteria jeopardizing your dental health, especially if the tooth loss was from a traumatic injury.

Your dentist needs to cover the exposed gum area to minimize infection risks as they prepare your dental bridges for installation at a later appointment. Thus, you will have temporary dental gum to cover the exposed area until your next meeting, serving the same purpose as the bridge you will receive.

However, since it is temporary, it is not as sturdy as the permanent bridge you will be waiting for. Thus, you want to avoid placing too much pressure on it as you bite or chew to prevent accidents.

Permanent Dental Bridge Placement

After the dental team finalizes formulating a suitable dental bridge for you, they will call you in for the placement procedure. The dentist could start with local anesthesia if necessary, as they may need to access your dentin or the deeper part of your gums.

Once the local anesthesia starts working, your dentist removes the temporary bridge and places the permanent one on the reshaped abutment teeth. In doing so, the middle crown extends to fill the tooth gap while the other crown falls into place on the other abutment tooth. Overall, the procedure can take a few minutes to an hour, depending on the number of tooth gaps to fill.

Post Treatment Care Tips to Observe

When your dentist completes the dental bridge placement process, they will provide aftercare directives for you to follow. Observing these requirements to maintain proper dental health is important, as neglecting them could render the entire process ineffective.

Important aftercare procedures to practice are:

Brush Your Teeth Everyday

Maintaining good oral hygiene is the most important process for any patient after treatment and in everyday life. By brushing and flossing at least twice a day, you reduce the number of disease-causing microbes in your gums and teeth. Ultimately, you will maintain good dental health, which reduces your chances of losing more teeth in the future to conditions like tooth decay.

Although daily brushing and flossing are the minimal requirements for oral health, you do not want to over-indulge. Brushing your teeth too vigorously and multiple times a day may cause enamel corrosion and increased tooth sensitivity.

Moreover, applying too much force when brushing around your dental bridges can weaken the abutment teeth and the bridge itself, meaning that you will need a review. To avoid this, you want to clean your teeth using moderate force while still making an effort to brush, even in the hard-to-reach areas.

Avoid Hard Foods and Using Teeth to Break Hard Items

Additionally, subjecting your newly-placed dental bridges to intense pressure by biting or chewing hard foods can be detrimental to their stability. Consequently, you may have to repeat the entire placement process depending on the damage to the bridges.

While hard foods are good for exercising your teeth and gums, exposing your bridges to extreme pressure is unnecessary. Instead, you want to gradually return to your hard-food diet to give the dental bridges sufficient time to adhere to the gums. Even then, your dentist will discourage you from exposing the teeth to hard force, as it may break the false crowns that replaced the missing teeth.

Further, you should avoid breaking hard items like bottle tops or plastics using your teeth. The external pressure can suddenly cause your teeth to shift from their position and affect the dental bridges. This may also cause sharp pains that require urgent medical intervention.

Have Professional Tooth Cleaning Sessions Often

Sometimes, brushing and flossing may not be enough to maintain dental health, especially after dental bridges. Thus, your dentist may recommend coming in for cleaning sessions to ensure that the surrounding areas do not harbor any bacteria.

Although regular cleaning sessions significantly prevent plaque or other harmful material from accumulating, they should not substitute for your standard brushing and flossing process. Over time, the professional cleaning procedures will also be reduced if your dentist is confident that the dental bridges are well adhered to your gums and can function like normal teeth.

Attend All Follow-Up Appointments

You should also not ignore the follow-up appointments that your dentist schedules, as they provide a good opportunity to monitor how dental bridges fit into your dental structure. Additionally, the appointments allow you to ask about any care and maintenance options that you may be unsure of, so you need to attend the appointments to improve your chances of a smooth recovery.

The Advantages of Dental Bridges

Going through with the placement of the dental bridge is highly beneficial for you, as you have a chance to:

Reduce Chances of Teeth Shifting from Their Position

A tooth gap allows the surrounding teeth to move out of place, which may cause misalignment issues. Over time, the problem may warrant you seeking orthodontic treatment, adding to unforeseen costs. By having your dentist fit dental bridges, you reduce the chances of teeth shifting, so you do not have to worry about additional treatments to realign your teeth.

Restoring Your Natural Aesthetic

Furthermore, restoring your smile is important, improving your confidence. It may also be critical if you work in a field that requires a formal look, for example, in a media position. Therefore, dental bridges will not only restore your natural look but may also mean the difference between securing new opportunities or not.

Regaining Your Normal Speech and Teeth Function

Patients who lose their teeth in areas of speech like the front oral cavity may also struggle to speak, especially when pronouncing some words. This is because the missing teeth prevent the tongue from sliding against a surface, which is important for proper pronunciation.

Additionally, biting and chewing may be more challenging with a missing tooth, resulting in reduced eating ability. Therefore, a dental bridge reduces these shortcomings and helps you return to your normal life by replacing the missing teeth.

Contact a Hawthorne Dentist Near Me

Dental bridges play an integral part in restoring your smile and mouth function and boosting your confidence. Upon deciding to proceed with the fitting process, you should partner with a skilled and highly experienced dentist who understands the placement and aftercare process.

At Ganji Dental, we dedicate our services to helping patients seeking dental bridges in Hawthorne, California. Our vast experience handling dental procedures makes us an excellent choice for you as we work to restore your smile. For more information on when you should have dental bridges fitted, call us at 310-643-8045.