Understanding How Bridges Function
A dental bridge consists of multiple crowns fused into one solid unit. The crowns at each end—called abutments—fit over your natural teeth that flank the empty space. The middle section contains one or more artificial teeth called pontics that fill the gap left by your missing teeth. This entire structure gets cemented permanently, making it a fixed component of your smile that you can’t remove.
Dr. Prouty or Dr. Connor prepares the anchor teeth by reshaping them, similar to preparing a tooth for a regular crown. These supporting teeth need adequate strength and structure to hold the bridge securely over time. After shaping these teeth, your dentist captures detailed impressions that go to a dental laboratory where technicians craft your custom bridge to match your existing teeth in colour, shape, and proportions.
You’ll wear a temporary bridge while the lab fabricates your permanent one. This temporary protects your prepared teeth and keeps your smile complete during the two to three weeks of fabrication time. When your custom bridge returns from the lab, you come back for final placement. Dr. Connor or Dr. Prouty verifies the fit meticulously, fine-tunes your bite to ensure comfort, and bonds the bridge permanently using strong dental cement.
Different Bridge Types to Consider
Your specific circumstances determine which bridge type works best—factors like how many teeth you’re missing, which teeth are gone, and the condition of your remaining teeth all influence the decision. Here are the primary options available:
Traditional Bridges
- The most frequently used type, ideal when healthy teeth exist on both sides of your gap
- Deliver outstanding stability and typically last 10-15 years or longer when properly maintained
- Two anchor points make them strong enough for replacing back teeth that endure substantial chewing forces
Cantilever Bridges
- Connect to teeth on just one side of the gap
- Suitable when only one adjacent tooth is available to provide support
- Less appropriate for areas experiencing heavy biting pressure
- Dr. Prouty and Dr. Connor determine whether this design fits your particular situation
Maryland Bridges
- Sometimes called resin-bonded bridges
- Employ a metal or porcelain framework that bonds to the backside of neighboring teeth instead of covering them completely with crowns
- Conserve more of your natural tooth structure but offer less strength than traditional designs
- Function best for front teeth where biting forces remain lighter
Implant-Supported Bridges
- Rely on dental implants rather than natural teeth for anchorage
- Perfect when you’ve lost multiple consecutive teeth and the surrounding natural teeth aren’t strong candidates for support
- Deliver exceptional stability without depending on your existing teeth
Advantages Bridges Provide
Bridges deliver permanence that removable partial dentures simply cannot replicate. You never remove them for cleaning, they never slip during meals or conversations, and you avoid messy dental adhesives entirely. Once your bridge is cemented in place, it operates like your natural teeth—you brush and floss around it using your routine, though you’ll need special floss threaders to clean beneath the artificial teeth where they span the gap.
The timeline for getting bridges in Dakota Dunes is considerably shorter than that of dental implants, which typically require several months while the implant post fuses with your jawbone. If you want your gap filled relatively soon, bridges offer a quicker path to completion. They also require less initial investment than implants, making them financially accessible to a wider range of patients.
Bridges prevent tooth migration that occurs when gaps exist. Your teeth naturally move toward empty spaces, creating bite misalignment, potential TMJ complications, and making future tooth replacement more challenging. A bridge holds proper spacing and prevents your remaining teeth from shifting out of position.
Determining Your Candidacy
You probably qualify as a good candidate if you’re missing one to three teeth in a row and have healthy teeth flanking at least one side of that gap. Those anchor teeth must have sufficient structure, solid roots, and healthy gums to provide long-term support for the bridge. Dr. Connor and Dr. Prouty assess these elements during your initial examination.
Gum disease requires treatment before bridge placement can proceed. Active periodontal disease weakens anchor teeth and raises the likelihood of bridge failure. If gum disease affects you, restoring gum health happens first, with bridge placement following once your gums have stabilized.
People who grind or clench their teeth can still receive bridges, though they’ll need a protective nightguard to shield both the bridge and natural teeth from excessive force. Grinding damage accumulates over time and can compromise bridges, so managing this habit protects your investment.
Bridges in Dakota Dunes
Missing teeth compromise your confidence, alter your bite, and damage your oral health in ways that intensify over time. Schedule an evaluation at Infinity Sedation Dentistry in Dakota Dunes, Watertown, or Sioux Falls to discover whether a dental bridge matches your needs. Dr. Kevin Connor and Dr. Brian Prouty will thoroughly examine your mouth, explain all available options transparently, and develop a personalized treatment strategy that rebuilds your smile and restores proper function. That gap doesn’t need to stay empty—let’s discuss filling it with a bridge that appears natural and serves you reliably for years to come.