Natural aging, accidents, or cavities can all lead to adult tooth loss, negatively impacting your quality of life. Having one or several missing teeth can make it harder to eat, speak, and smile confidently, besides leading to bite misalignments. Luckily, restoring your smile is easy with our bridge dental in Charleston, SC.
What Are Dental Bridges?
A dental bridge is a permanent dental restoration to replace one or several missing teeth. As the name suggests, it works by supporting your artificial teeth with a bridge-like structure that’s attached to neighboring, natural teeth, which are called abutment teeth. If you don’t have any teeth to provide support, an implant can be used, too.
Artificial teeth used in dental bridges are called pontics and you'll have one for each missing tooth. They’re custom-designed to match your smile in shape and size, and can be made of ceramic, resin, porcelain, or metals like cobalt and gold.
Dental bridges are an alternative to partial dentures, and they can help you eat and speak better and improve how your teeth look.
Benefits of Dental Bridges
Dental bridges offer several benefits for people who have lost one or more teeth, including:
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Restored Functionality: Missing teeth can make it difficult to eat certain foods or speak clearly. Bridges can replace those teeth, restoring your ability to chew and speak properly.
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Improved Aesthetics: Missing teeth can affect the appearance of your smile, leading to self-esteem issues. Dental bridges can be a natural-looking solution to fill in the gaps and improve the overall appearance of your smile.
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Prevents Teeth Shifting: When a tooth is missing, surrounding teeth can shift out of place, potentially leading to alignment issues. A dental bridge helps prevent this problem by filling in the space.
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Durability and Convenience: Dental bridges are very durable and offer a long-lasting solution to tooth loss. Unlike removable dentures, they are fixed in place, making them more comfortable to wear and easier to care for. With proper maintenance, your dental bridges will last several years.
Types of Dental Bridges
Tooth loss can look very different depending on the patient, their needs, and the overall state of their mouths. Because we want to help every single person that crosses our doors, we offer several types of dental bridges:
Traditional Dental Bridge
The most common kind of bridge is a traditional dental bridge, which is placed where a missing tooth has left a gap between two natural teeth. It is made up of a dental crown that is cemented into place between each of the abutment teeth to hold a false tooth in place.
Implant-Supported Dental Bridge
An implant-supported dental bridge is secured by a dental implant rather than crowns or some other type of framework. The bridge is secured by implants, with one required for each missing tooth.
Get a Bridge Dental in Charleston, SC
Missing teeth are much more than an aesthetic concern: they can significantly affect your quality of life. Because your oral health is our priority, we’re proud to offer several restorative dentistry treatments to help you restore your smile.
If you’re interested in learning more, reach out and set an appointment today!