York PA Dental Bridges
Though dental implants have been the rising stars in the world of missing teeth replacement, dental bridges are a well established, perfectly viable alternative. If the teeth surrounding the site of your missing tooth need dental crowns as part of your restoration, a dental bridge may actually be the preferred solution.
Though most general dentists can effectively place a fixed bridge, special techniques used by skilled cosmetic dentists like Dr. Currie can make your dental bridge not just functional, but beautiful, too.
These pictures demonstrate the use of the "ovate pontic" technique, which involves surgically sculpting the gum so that it appears that the false tooth is growing out of your gum.
Site prepared using ovate pontic |
Same site with dental bridge in place |
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Another very esthetic type of dental bridge is the Encore Bridge. Unlike the bridge pictured above, the Encore bridge does not require crowns on the adjacent teeth. If the teeth surrounding the site of the missing tooth are healthy and cosmetically appealing, this can be a good choice.
To place an Encore bridge, a space is cut into the back side of each of the adjacent teeth. A fiber-reinforced tooth colored resin is bonded into place, creating a framework across the site of the missing tooth. A porcelain veneer is then bonded into place on the framework. If placed by an expert cosmetic dentist, this type of bridge looks just like your natural teeth, and is a great choice if your surrounding teeth are healthy and attractive.
An Encore bridge does have its drawbacks–it is not considered strong enough for replacing missing teeth in the back of the mouth.