Cosmetic Dentistry – Dental Bridges Procedure
All You Need For A Beautiful Smile
Do you have gaps in your smile because of tooth loss? You don’t need to live with that any longer! We offer dental bridges as a solution for people who have gaps in their smiles due to tooth loss at our home office in St. Louis. Dental bridges fill in the gaps left by missing teeth, keeping your other teeth in place. They can also fix an uneven bite, which will make it easier for you to chew and speak. And they’ll make you look younger too! Dr. Shea Wilson is the premiere St. Louis Dental Bridge dentist and will help you feel confident with a beautiful smile.
What Is a Fixed Dental Bridge?
A bridge is a prosthetic tooth (or teeth) that attaches on one or both sides to teeth prepared with dental crowns. The fixed bridge is permanently joined onto the neighboring teeth and consists of three basic units: the false tooth or teeth, and two abutment crowns. The style of bridge will depend on the strength and health of the neighboring teeth, as well as the location of the gap in relation to the rest of your dentition.
Fixed dental bridge
The advantages of a fixed dental bridge are:
- It’s fixed, stable, and feels like your own teeth, although the more inexpensive they are, the less this is the case.
- In most cases it can be made to look just like you never had a tooth missing.
The disadvantages are:
- You have to treat the two teeth on either side of the missing teeth in order to anchor the bridge in place. These teeth may be in good shape with nothing wrong.
- There will now be extra pressure on these adjoining teeth to make up for the missing tooth or teeth.
- They can be hard to floss.
Our St Louis Dental Bridge Patients Describes Their Experiences
Susan S. received a bridge that lasted 35 years and then replaced it with a dental implant.
Susan S. says:
“I WISH THERE HAD BEEN IMPLANTS BACK IN 1978. I’d cracked a tooth in college and had a bridge put in by another dentist. It needed to be replaced and that’s when I got my three tooth bridge from Artistic Dentistry. The bridge they did lasted 35 years. They usually don’t last that long. It was a great bridge but it needed to be replaced.
They offered me the choice: I could replace my bridge or get an implant. He keeps up with technology so he’s able to present all options. I’m grateful to have good teeth and I take care of them. My smile is something worth hanging onto. I chose the implant. I was able to have all the procedures in our office. That was two years ago. I’m really happy with the implant. It’s so easy to clean and it feels more like a part of my mouth than the bridge did. When I bite down it feels like a real tooth – not a thing suspended between two other teeth, which is how a bridge feels. The implant doesn’t feel cosmetic. The implant tooth engages with the other teeth. It just feels more natural than the bridge. It’s connected to me. It feels secure. The whole process was simple.”
I am (was) missing several teeth (lower right side) and had tried partials designed by two different dentists. I came to Artistic Dentistry on recommendation and they fitted me with a unique cantilever bridge. The prosthesis is absolutely marvelous! The new teeth are fitted perfectly and feel like my own natural teeth