A bridge is a fixed prosthetic that can be an effective solution in cases of partial tooth loss. It is exactly as the name suggests, a bridge that replaces lost teeth between your remaining strong ones. However, in order to qualify for a dental bridge, you must have remaining teeth that are strong enough to support it. If you do, we will place dental crowns on those teeth these teeth so they can serve as anchors to hold up a gum-colored base that we can use to secure the bridge. Essentially, your remaining teeth provide the support necessary for ensuring your new tooth or teeth stay in place.

Absolutely. We will take every step necessary to ensure they look natural and fit perfectly. We begin by taking accurate measurements and also matching the shade of your prosthetic with your surrounding natural teeth. If your other teeth are stained or yellow, now is an excellent time to whiten them since we will create your new teeth using materials that are both resistant to stain and bleach.

The duration of a dental bridge is different for everyone and is impacted by your daily habits. However, fixed dental bridges can last for 15 years or even longer. On the short end, they tend to last for five years. One thing to keep in mind is that the overall health of your mouth will influence the longevity of your bridge. Since the natural teeth with dental crowns determine the stability of the bridge, you must keep your natural teeth healthy. We recommend you do so by visiting our Bloomfield, NJ dental office for a teeth cleaning and dental examination twice a year. We can remove built-up plaque to prevent decay and infections. If you develop any oral health problems, we will address them immediately. We will prevent the problems from spreading do not spread and your mouth can remain in excellent health.

In our Bloomfield dental office, we understand the importance of choice. We know that when we see 10 people with tooth loss, each of them will have a slightly different goal and their lifestyles will be different. Things like the type of food you like to eat, whether or not you play sports, if you are outgoing and gregarious or prefer to keep to yourself can impact which tooth replacement option is right for you. This is why when you come in for a consultation, we will take time to ask questions and get to know you. Asking about your hobbies and whether or not you work out may seem out of place for a dentist, but everything works together. For example, if your hobbies involve singing in the choir, dentures may not be a good solution for you because they could pop out of place. Simultaneously, if you like to run marathons, you will need a tooth replacement solution that will not become loose with aggressive impact. After asking you questions and conducting a physical examination, we will make a recommendation as to which option we feel will work best for your lifestyle. If you are a good candidate for all of them, we will let you know that as well, so you can ask more specific questions regarding the procedures and cost involved.

If you want to replace multiple teeth but are not ready for a surgical procedure, dental bridges can be an excellent solution. We can create natural-looking bridges that will blend in with your natural teeth. To complete the procedure, we will need to identify two of your remaining teeth that are strong enough to support your new bridge. We will then prepare these teeth and place dental crowns around them. These crowns will serve as an anchor to hold the dental bridges in place. This is what provides dental bridges with the security of natural teeth and gives you the ability to eat your favorite foods without feeling self-conscious. The challenge is that this procedure does permanently alter some of your healthy teeth. This makes it important to carefully consider the pros and cons of using dental bridges instead of self-reliant dental implants.

When getting dental crowns and dental bridges installed, it is advisable that you work with a cosmetic dentist that knows how to complete the procedure in a way that looks natural. At True Dental Care of Bloomfield, we can do so while also working to keep our patients as comfortable as possible by using sedation dentistry. The process for both procedures is fairly similar. Before getting started, an impression is taken of the teeth so that the new crown or bridge can be created in a dental lab.

When placing a dental crown around a tooth, True Dental Care of Bloomfield starts by preparing the tooth. We will need to remove a portion of the enamel so that there is room for the new crown to surround the tooth without pushing other teeth out of place. Once complete, we will clean the tooth and secure a temporary crown to it using removable glue. Patients typically wear a temporary crown for around two weeks while waiting for a permanent one to be created in the lab. During this time, it is important to be careful with what you eat and how you brush your teeth since the temporary is designed to come off.

When the dental restoratives are complete, patients return to our Bloomfield dentist office, so that we can remove the temporaries and bond the permanent ones to the tooth. For a dental crown, we will secure the cap around the tooth and complete it through dental bonding. With a bridge, a crown is placed on the two teeth that are surrounding the missing one. On top of the crown is a piece that looks like natural gums that will hold the new tooth in place. These two crowns serve as anchors for this synthetic “bridge” and makes a new tooth as durable as it can be. Patients depend on this procedure as a way to replace missing teeth in a way that looks natural and restores the functionality of the missing tooth.