When a tooth is lost, this could lead to a gap in your smile and major oral health complications. To avoid this and ensure you can smile without hesitation, we can take on tooth loss with a dental prosthetic. In today’s blog, your Pella, IA, dentist talks about how we support a dental bridge.
The Causes of Your Tooth Loss
What leads to missing teeth? For some people, losing teeth due to a cavity or as the result of an infection could be a factor. A serious injury could also be responsible for missing teeth. The most common cause is typically periodontitis, the advanced stage of gum disease. When you lose teeth, even just one or two to three in a row, this could lead to serious trouble. Teeth could shift to create misalignment, and the pressure on your jaw could mean the onset of TMJ disorder and bruxism (teeth grinding). You could also have complications with meals or speech, and may feel uncomfortable with your appearance. But we can fill the gaps with a dental bridge!
Creating a Custom-Made Prosthetic
The bridge we use to address the gap in your smile will be custom-made to ensure a proper fit and a lifelike appearance. To begin, we will need to numb the teeth on each side of the gap. Known as abutment teeth, these will support your new prosthetic. We will then remove structure from these teeth and take images and impressions of the empty space and the abutment teeth. We then use the information in a lab setting to design and craft your new bridge.
Securing Your New Teeth
The prosthetic will contain new teeth with a crown on each side. All made from ceramic, these will be color-matched to blend with your smile. Ceramic can also endure greater bite forces and pressures too. When your new prosthetic is ready, we will attach the crown portions to the abutment teeth, which secures your new teeth for 10 to 15 years on average. Your new teeth will be fixed in place, and we could also discuss supporting them with dental implant instead of crown and abutment teeth, which covers natural tooth structure and offers an option that can last much longer, decades even!
If you have any questions about dental bridges, then contact our team today to learn more. We look forward to helping you enjoy a complete smile again. A visit now is also a chance to use your 2025 dental benefits before they expire!
Schedule Your Visit for a Dental Prosthetic
We want to help you fill the gaps in your smile with a custom dental prosthetic. Call Allen and Neumann Family Dentistry in Pella, IA, today at 641-628-1121 to learn more about replacing your missing teeth.