In restorative dentistry, the dental crown and tooth bridges are the most common way of dealing with damaged or missing teeth. The main objective is to reinstate your beautiful smile and to avoid problems in the future. The dental crowns and tooth bridges are dental prosthetics quite unlike dentures that can be removed. The bridges and crowns are firmly fixed and can only be taken out by a dentist. Read on to develop an understanding of dental bridges and crowns.
Why is important to go for a restorative dental procedure?
Firstly, having a crown replacement or tooth bridging procedures greatly affect the way you look. Secondly, and more importantly, such procedures prevent the buildup of plaque and dental diseases. Here’s what happens:
- The gap affects the bite, causing adjacent teeth to lean toward the gap. This affects the alignment of the upper and lower jaw, thereby the bite is modified.
- Because of this, the food particles will get packed into the gap, leading to gum diseases, plaque formation and tooth decay.
Dental Bridges
Dental bridges cover the space between the missing teeth literally. They replace either one or more than on missing teeth. Bridges are generally composed for either two or more crowns which are placed in between the anchoring teeth (adjacent natural teeth). The false teeth, called the pontics, can be made of porcelain, ceramic, gold or any other alloy. Ceramic and porcelain teeth can be made to resemble the color of your original teeth.
Crowns
Crowns are used to protect and strengthen the basic tooth structure. It is a cap that is shaped like a tooth and is placed over the existing tooth. Cemented over the damaged tooth, the crown looks like the original tooth because of the use of ceramic and porcelain. It may be composed of alloys, gold, and acrylic too, which are robust and are mostly preferred for rear-end teeth. Sometimes, porcelain is bonded over a metal sheet to make the crown stronger.
People require crown treatments for the following purposes:
- Restoring broken teeth and cavities
- Attaching bridges
- Replacing filling
- Covering teeth that have undergone root canal treatments
- Covering implants and discolored teeth
Making of Bridges and Crowns
Before the crown or the bridge is made, the affected tooth is reduced on size for the restorative dental crowns and bridges to fit the space accurately. After this, the dentist goes on to taking the measurements through an impression. The purpose of this is to create a perfect mold for the bridge or crown. The color of the porcelain or ceramic is also suggested to the patient.
The impression is then taken to the lab so that the crown or the bridge is manufactured. In the meantime, a temporary crown or bridge is placed to fill the gap. Once the permanent prosthetic crown or bridge is prepared, the temporary one is lifted and cemented with the permanent one.
If you suffer from broken or damaged teeth, visit Spring Cypress Dental for restorative dental procedures to receive the highest quality services.