When to Replace a Dental Bridge?

Thanks to modern dentistry, losing a tooth does not have to be the end of the world. Nowadays, there are many ways to restore a missing dental piece. Among them, we offer dental implants, dentures, and dental bridges in Yellowknife.

What are Dental Implants?

Dental implants are small devices that look like a screw and replace the root of a missing dental piece. Your doctor drills it inside the jawbone, and depending on how many teeth you are missing, may place dentures, dental crowns, or dental bridges above.

Before the permanent restoration that will replace the crown, you must wait three months for the osseointegration. The latter is when the dental implant fuse with the jawbone, becoming a part of your anatomy. After this period, you may opt for your prosthetic work.

What are Dental Bridges?

Dental bridges are oral appliances that, traditionally, consist of two dental crowns and a pontic. The pontic is the false tooth that goes between the crowns.

The dental crowns will cap the neighboring teeth to the gap. In some cases, they go over two dental implants.

Our dentist in Yellowknife works with sedation dentistry. If you become anxious due to the treatment, you may take a sedative before the appointment to relax and feel calm (oral sedation) or use gas sedation.

For creating room for the crowns, the doctor will shave down the enamel and dentin of the neighboring teeth (also called abutments). Then, they will take a mold of the area with putty and send it to a dental laboratory.

After two weeks, the dental technician will finish the bridge. Choosing a dentist near you is recommendable because the procedure may take about three visits.

The following appointments are for evaluating the fitting of the bridge. Once it is ready, the doctor will cement it. A dental bridge may last up to 15 years with proper care, sometimes more or less. The lifestyle of the patient will impact the longevity of the dental work. 

When to Replace a Dental Bridge?

Among the signs that your bridge is loosening, you may find the following:

- Shifting – The bridge is not stable, and it moves when you bite or chew.

- Toothache – If you feel dental pain in the abutment teeth, they may be damaged. You must visit a dentist right away to evaluate them and determine if you need again to look for dental bridges near you. 

- Bad breath – If you sense a bad taste in your mouth, there may be food debris trapped. If food is sticking in there, it means the bridge is not sealing correctly. Your doctor may need to recement it or replace it entirely, depending on the situation. 

- Tooth sensitivity – After dental work, you may feel tooth sensitivity for a couple of days. However, if the discomfort continues, your doctor must evaluate you. Healthy teeth should not hurt, and pain is a sign that something is wrong.

Dentistry is not one-size-fits-all, and your dentist will solve the problem depending on the cause. If abutments have cavities, they must remove the bridge, fix the teeth underneath, and cement it again. However, after the dental fillings, the original bridge may not adapt. These are the things that your doctor will check on before deciding on a solution.

In the best case, you will not need a new bridge. In the worst one, you will. It is still good because it has a solution; however, it will cost you time and money once more. Our advice is that you take excellent care of your bridge and oral health to extend its life as much as possible.