When you lose a tooth, don’t assume you’re stuck with an embarrassing gap in your smile. To fill the gap and prevent major complications for your oral health, your Garland, TX, dentist can create a custom dental bridge. In today’s blog, we’re looking at how we create one that fits comfortable and looks natural.
The Long-Term Impact of a Single Lost Tooth
When even one tooth is lost, problems could arise for your smile. For example, you could have a gap that impacts how well you can eat. You could also feel embarrassed about your appearance and try to hide your smile. The surrounding teeth may eventually drift from position due to this gap, leading to misalignment and an increased risk of issues like tooth decay and gum disease. A missing tooth also upsets bite balance, making the onset of painful disorders like TMD and bruxism (chronic teeth grinding) more likely. Over time, these factors could themselves mean further tooth loss.
Crafting a Custom Prosthetic
However, filling the gap in your smile could prevent these issues from arising. To begin, we will assess the causes of your missing tooth to see if you need underlying oral health issues addressed first. Next, we remove structure from the teeth on either side of the gap, the abutment teeth, and take detailed digital images of the area, which we use to design the prosthetic. The bridge will contain new teeth, which we call pontics, and have crowns attached to each end. The prosthetic will be crafted from metal like ceramic, which can be color-matched to blend with your smile and also absorb daily bite forces with ease. Your new smile will look natural!
Placing Your Fixed Prosthetic
When the prosthetic is ready, you will return to the office. We will attach the crowns to the abutment teeth, which firmly scurs your pontics in place. With proper care and attention, the bridges could last as long as 15 years! Routine dare will help keep it stable, including brushing and flossing and cleaning the spaces between the top of the gums and the bottom of the badge, and seeing us for checkups and cleanings every six months. If you have any questions about our approach to treating tooth loss or creating a lifelike replacement option, then contact our team today.
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT DENTAL BRIDGES?
We want to make sure you enjoy a new tooth that looks great and lasts for years to come. To learn more about the process of replacing missing teeth with a custom-made solution, then schedule a consultation by calling Mai Dentistry in Garland, TX, today at 972-530-0552. For our patients who don’t speak English, our office is fluent in both Spanish and Vietnamese.
