How Long Does a Dental Bridge Take?

December 1, 2022

Replacing missing teeth might overwhelm you if you are unaware of the solutions to replace the lost teeth in your mouth. If you have heard about dentures, you might think it is the only solution to replace missing teeth.

Thankfully dentistry advances enable dentists to recommend options like dental bridges or artificial teeth supported by healthy teeth on either side of the void to bridge the gap between your teeth.

If you consider replacing missing teeth, you must prepare to endure multiple appointments with the Encinitas dentist because it is practically impossible to get tooth replacement solutions in a single visit.

Dental bridges are artificial prosthetics customized explicitly for your mouth after the dentist in Encinitas performs a clinical exam of the neighboring teeth adjacent to the missing tooth gap before offering a solution best suited for your needs.

You can find different dental bridges, each suited to specific conditions. The dentist must determine which option is suitable for you and recommend one to ensure they help you bridge the gap without indulging in unnecessary extra expenditure.

Therefore, you must exercise patience with the dentist when you set up your consultation to replace your missing teeth.

What Types of Dental Bridges Are Available?

The dentist can offer you four different types of dental bridges. They are:

• Traditional Dental Bridges: conventional bridges involve placing dental crowns on either side of the missing tooth gap on the healthy neighboring teeth or an implant with a Pontic between them to function as your artificial tooth.

Ceramics or porcelain helps make dental bridges, and the conventional variety is the most popular.

• Cantilever Bridges: If having merely one natural tooth next to the missing tooth gap, the dentist recommends a cantilever bridge needing simply one dental crown on the adjacent tooth with a Pontic bonded to it.

Cantilever bridges are not recommended for lost molars because they can harm the neighboring teeth by exerting too much pressure on them.

• Maryland Bridges: If missing a front tooth, the dentist suggests a Maryland bridge made of porcelain and metal or porcelain wings to attach your neighboring teeth.
• Implant-Supported Bridges: Dental bridges supported by implants are the most stable but expensive, needing surgery and extensive recovery before you can have the artificial tooth in your mouth.

How Much Time Does the Dental Bridge Process Require?

Dental bridges require at least two appointments with the dentist, each lasting an hour or more.

When providing dental bridges in Encinitas, the dentist must reshape your neighboring teeth to accommodate dental crowns to support a false tooth or teeth between them.

The two adjacent teeth next to the missing tooth gap need grinding down to remove tooth structure for the dental laboratory to create your dental crowns and the bridge.

Tooth structure removal is uncomfortable, but the dentist gives you local anesthesia before starting the process. After the adjacent teeth are reshaped, the dentist makes molds of them for the dental laboratory to create your dental crowns and bridges.

You receive temporary acrylic bridges to cover the gap in your smile until the dental lab returns your bridges after three weeks.

Three weeks later, you can revisit the dentist to install the permanent bridges, which starts by removing the temporary restorations before making adjustments if required and bonding it in place to function as your placement tooth.

Before you leave the dentist’s office, the professional suggests that you maintain excellent dental hygiene by brushing twice daily, flossing once, and returning to them every six months for cleanings to ensure you don’t develop infections under the dental bridges.

Tooth Decay under Bridge Symptoms

Artificial tooth replacement solutions like dental bridges will not decay or develop cavities.

Unfortunately, your natural teeth and gums remain susceptible to the problem and can attract cavities and gum disease if you don’t maintain proper oral hygiene.

If you fail to clean the plaque accumulating on your teeth and below the gum line, you develop infection and inflammation resulting in periodontal disease that can cause your bridges to fail because the underlying teeth can loosen and fall out or need extraction.

In addition, the plaque on your teeth can also cause cavities on the underlying teeth resulting in discomfort and result in failure of the dental bridge.

Finally, infections like tooth decay and gum disease can loosen the artificial teeth making them seem that it is moving when chewing.

Therefore if you intend to prevent complications with your artificial teeth, you must maintain appropriate dental hygiene as suggested by the dentist or prepare yourself for other replacements for missing teeth.

If you have lost teeth and need replacements, Sinclair Smiles provides dental bridges to suit your unique situation. Kindly contact them for a consultation to determine which dental bridge best suits your needs.

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