How Do Dental Bridges Improve a Patient’s Oral Health and Appearance?
Until you have lost your natural tooth, you may not understand what patients without teeth go through every day. It is not only humiliating to have everyone stare at the space in your mouth but losing teeth presents many oral health problems.
What are Dental Bridges?
They are dental appliances for replacing missing teeth in dentistry. Dentists use dental bridges to replace one or two missing teeth without undermining the aesthetics of their smiles. Usually, tooth bridgework will serve as an alternative to other tooth replacement remedies like dentures or dental implants.
How Do Dental Bridges Boost Oral Health?
Dental bridges work by linking your adjacent teeth and the lost teeth. A typical dental bridge comprises an artificial replacement tooth and two dental crowns. The dental crowns hold the artificial tooth in place. Our dentists at Knoxville Dental Associates will prepare the adjacent teeth of the missing tooth to position the dental crowns. In other cases, patients opt for a dental bridge with one dental crown instead of two.
A tooth bridgework is an excellent solution to lost teeth. A bridgework can replace the missing one as long as you have the rest of your teeth intact. Some of the ways that dental bridges help restore your oral health are:
- Preventing the shifting of teeth – When you have a space in your mouth, your teeth naturally shift with time to fill up the available space. It means that you will have an alignment problem, which would require wearing braces for correction and realignment.
- Preventing bone tissue loss – Losing natural teeth causes the gradual disintegration of your jaw’s bone tissue due to prolonged inactivity. Eventually, the bone tissue will be unhealthy for supporting your remaining natural teeth. Part of the reason you must prioritize tooth replacement is to prevent the bone tissue from deteriorating to compromise the stability of your remaining teeth.
- To restore the health of your gums – Without teeth, it is not only the jawbone that is inactive but also the gum tissue. Replacing teeth prevents excessive gum tissue recession.
Why do patients need bridges?
Dental bridges near you have the potential to transform your smile drastically. While the primary goal is to replace the lost teeth, you need dental bridges for the following reasons:
- To replace a few missing teeth – Dental bridges work best for replacing up to three missing teeth in a row. This way, you can retain the rest of your teeth instead of having to remove them all to get dentures.
- For a natural-looking smile – Dental bridges feature porcelain material. It is tooth-colored, which means that the bridgework that replaces your missing tooth will be very similar to your natural teeth in color, shape, and size.
- Promoting optimal functionality – Unless you have more than one tooth missing, you may not quite understand the impact of losing teeth on the functionality of your mouth. Without teeth, you drool more often than not. Besides, chewing properly and even pronunciation of some words can be problematic.
- Complementing facial appearance – Dental bridges do not just improve the appearance of your smile. Tooth bridges offer extra support to your facial muscles, promoting overall youthfulness and beauty.
- No surgery is needed – If you are afraid to go under the needle, you do not need to with dental bridges. The procedure only involves preparing the adjacent teeth, which does not involve cutting open your gum tissue.
- They won’t slip off accidentally – One of the main issues that patients with dentures bring up is their artificial teeth slipping off. It can be embarrassing if it happens to you in public. Fortunately, dental bridges are affixed to your natural teeth permanently through dental cement.
- To boost your confidence – If, for nothing else, you must consider getting dental bridges for the sake of your confidence. How you feel about yourself significantly influences your interactions with others around you.
Summary
If you still find yourself feeling hesitant about whether dental bridges can benefit your oral health and transform your smile, reach out to a dentist in Knoxville for a consultation with a dental bridge expert to learn as much as you can about them.