Restore Your Mouth to Like New with Dental Bridges from Cottage Dental Care
The term “bridging the gap” is quite literal when it comes to dental bridges. Where there might be missing teeth in your mouth, whether due to decay or an accident, a bridge can help fill the space. Our patients at Cottage Dental Care that come in for bridges do so to help keep the rest of their teeth in shape and restore their beautiful smiles!
What Are Bridges?
A dental bridge acts in much of the same way a traditional bridge might work: it covers a gap. But rather than building a bridge over water, we build a bridge over teeth (or where teeth used to be). Bridges are an excellent way to take the space created by one or more missing teeth. Usually, they replace a missing tooth where there is still a tooth on either side. The bridge will have a “false tooth” in the middle to replace the missing tooth. Crowns are added on both sides of the “false tooth” and cover the teeth on either side of the missing tooth or teeth. Finally, the bridge is cemented into place and is NOT removable.
What are Crowns?
As mentioned previously, dental bridges also utilize another tooth restoration tool/procedure known as crowns, or “caps.” Crowns act as anchors, providing stability for a bridge and ensuring false teeth stay in place. However, crowns can play a separate role apart from securing dental bridges. For example, crowns are needed for:
- Protecting a weak tooth from breaking
- To hold together parts of a cracked tooth
- Restore an already broken tooth or a tooth that is severely worn down
- To cover and support a tooth with a large filling and a small amount of remaining tooth structure
- To cover misshaped or severely discolored teeth
How Bridges Benefit Your Oral Health
Overall, bridges are one of the best solutions to resolving issues resulting from missing teeth. Not only do bridges help restore your natural smile, but they assist with potential problems such as:
- Chewing – Missing teeth can make it difficult for individuals to chew their food properly. At times, chewing can become painful. Additionally, not properly chewing food can lead to an increased risk for choking or problems with digestion.
- Speaking – Whether you realize it or not, your teeth play a significant role in your ability to speak with others. Especially if you’re missing multiple teeth, it can be challenging to form sounds such as ‘th’, ‘v,’ ‘f,’ ‘s,’ and ‘z.’
- Shifting Teeth – While your jaw and gums do work to hold your teeth in place, so do the other teeth surrounding a tooth. However, your other teeth are more likely to shift and slide around with an absence of teeth, thus becoming looser and potentially falling out.
- Your Face’s Shape – As soon as you lose teeth, your jawbone begins to deteriorate. More specifically, without teeth attached to your jaw, there are no tooth roots to stimulate the bone cells in your jaw. And as your jawbone goes through deterioration, you risk losing more teeth and potential facial collapse.
Additional Services in Bloomington IL
Oral DNA testing: We offer saliva testing for signs of periodontal disease and a mucosal viral infection known as HPV that could potentially lead to oral cancer.
Learn More About Bridges
For the sake of your oral health and restoring your smile, consider getting a dental bridge in Bloomington IL to replace your missing teeth. You can contact Cottage Dental Care today at 309-228-9578 to request an appointment. Also, our office is located at 2206 Cottage Ave, Bloomington, IL 61701.
