Dental bridge
Dental bridge is prosthesis or fixed dental restoration which is used to replace missing tooth/teeth. It is done by attaching the artificial tooth replacing the missing tooth to the adjacent natural teeth.
The natural teeth adjacent to the area of missing tooth are grinded and caps are placed over them. These caps are attached to the artificial teeth. This whole as a unit is bridge. Minimum 3 units are there in bridge, i.e.., to replace single missing tooth, two teeth on either side are given caps to which artificial tooth is joined. This becomes 3 unit bridge. Similarly number of crowns and artificial teeth depends on how many teeth are to be replaced.
Prior X rays are taken to figure out the status of adjacent teeth and underlying bone. If there is any cavity in adjacent teeth they are filled. It cavity is massive near to the nerves, root canal is done before making bridge. If they are sound enough, there is no need of root canal treatment.
The procedure is painless. Mild sensitivity is felt sometimes while grinding the teeth. If you feel pain or unbearable sensitivity it can be done under local anesthesia to make that area numb. Thus you won’t experience any sensitivity while grinding.
After sufficient space is created to accommodate bridge, impressions are made.
These impressions are negative replica of your teeth which are prepared for bridge placement. This is then sent to lab and bridge is fabricated.
Once the bridge is fabricated, it is adjusted according to your bite and fixed using dental cements. This process is painless and less time consuming. The cements act as glue to keep your bridge in place. Though it won’t come out easily but if somehow it comes out same bridge can be cemented again without any discomfort.
If you want tooth coloured replacement of your missing teeth you can go for either metal ceramic or all ceramic caps.
In metal ceramic there is an underlying layer of metal. Metal framework give strength to the bridge. Over it a layer of ceramic is given. This layer matches the shade of your adjacent teeth. This gives a near natural look.
In all ceramic, it is completely made of ceramic based material which is strong enough to give strength as well as natural look to match you existing natural teeth. This gives more natural appearance. It won’t give any blackish hue around the neck which is present sometimes with time in metal ceramic caps because of the metal layer.
If you don’t have any issues with the looks you can also go for metal caps. Though metal caps are visible and less preferred due to the looks. They are cheaper as compared to ceramic ones.
You can eat almost everything with bridge like your natural teeth. No major diet restrictions are there. Rest it depends on your bone health also.
Dental bridge is fixed replacement of missing teeth. It won’t come out on its own.You need not to remove and clean them. These are cleaned like natural teeth by means of brushing.
Life of bridge ranges from 10-15 years. It depends on your brushing habits and general gum health. Caps are resistant to wear and tear being strong enough so they last a lifetime. The reason we need to get them change is the changes in mouth which come with time. Over period of years gums gradually go down thus creating gaps between the gums and cap margins. This leads to food lodgement and cavities in the underlying teeth if bridge is not changed.
No special care is to be taken after placement of bridge. You should brush twice a day with your regular toothpaste only. Flossing is recommended to keep the areas between the teeth clean.
Get a casual check up at your regular dental clinic every 6-8 months.
Cost of bridge depends on the number of caps to be placed and type of cap chosen. Metal ceramic cap costs 2.5k per cap. All ceramic caps start from 6k per cap. So whichever cap you choose, cost will be multiplied by the number of caps. Say if you to go for metal ceramic caps for replacement of single tooth, three unit bridge is given. Cost will be 7.5k.
Bridge is convinient comfortable and cost effective method of getting a near natural fixed replacement of your missing teeth.