Dental Bridges

What Are Dental Bridges?

Dental Bridges replace missing teeth. Specifically, they can replace one tooth or a row of missing teeth.

There are different parts that make up a Dental Bridge:

• Abutments are the structures that support your Dental Bridge. While the term often refers to natural teeth, it can also refer to tiny connector posts used in dental implant-supported bridges.
• Pontics are the artificial (false) teeth that fill in the gap left behind by missing teeth.

Depending on your situation and the type of bridge you receive, your bridge might consist of one or more abutments and one or more pontics.

Traditional or cantilever Bridge

To place a traditional or cantilever bridge, your dentist will:

Give you local anesthesia to keep you comfortable during your dental bridge procedure.
Reshape your abutment teeth (the natural teeth that’ll support your new bridge). To do this, they’ll need to remove some tooth enamel. This step is irreversible.
Take dental impressions and send them to a dental laboratory. There, a lab technician will use them to create your final bridge.
Place a temporary bridge until a lab creates your final bridge. It usually takes about two to four weeks to make a dental bridge.

During a second office visit (once your final bridge is ready), your dentist will:

Remove your temporary dental bridge. Try on your new final bridge and check the fit. Bond (cement) your new dental bridge in place.

Maryland Bridge

To place a Maryland bridge, your dentist will:

Prepare your teeth for the metal wings.
Take dental impressions and send them to a laboratory. (A lab technician will use these to make your final dental bridge.)

Once your final bridge is ready, your dentist will schedule a second office visit. During this appointment, they’ll:

Try in your new Maryland bridge and check the fit.
Apply dental etch to the back surfaces of your neighboring (abutment) teeth. This allows for bonding of the dental cement.
Bond the wings of the Maryland bridge to the backs of your abutment teeth using dental resin cement.

Implant-supported Bridge

An implant-supported bridge requires several office visits, including one surgery appointment.

During the first appointment, a dentist, periodontist or oral surgeon will:

Give you anesthesia to numb your mouth and keep you comfortable.
Place dental implants into your jaw during an oral surgery procedure.

After surgery, your implants will need to heal and fuse to your jawbone (a process known as osseointegration). This process takes three to six months on average, but it could take longer depending on your situation.

Once your dental implants have integrated (fused), your dentist will:

Attach impression copings to your dental implants and take dental impressions. (Impression copings are tiny connector posts that extend slightly beyond your gum line.)
Take dental impressions with the copings in place. They’ll send the impressions to a dental lab.
Remove the abutments while you wait for the lab to make your new implant-supported bridge.

Once your final implant-supported Bridge is ready, your dentist will:

Place the implant abutments and attached bridge to your dental implants and confirm the fit.
Secure your bridge in place. Your dentist may use dental cement or tiny screws to do this. (It shouldn’t hurt, though.)

Because dental implants take a few months to integrate (fuse) with your jaw, implant-supported bridges take longer than other types of bridges.

Video courtesy to Lassus Tandartsen.