When you lose a tooth as a child it’s likely you’ll just have another tooth grow back in its place to fill in your beautiful smile, however when you lose a tooth as an adult it can be a traumatizing experience trying to figure out how to replace something that won’t grow back.
For those who find themselves in the unfortunate situation of having a missing tooth, at least there are a few viable options for tooth replacement that can restore your smile and your confidence fairly quickly, with minimal pain.
Two of the more popular ways for a dental professional to replace a lost permanent tooth are dental bridges and dental implants. Both are non-removable permanent solutions to the problem and both have their pros and cons.
Dental Implants
Dental implants can be used to replace one missing tooth, or multiple missing teeth. Each tooth would be replaced individually with this method. The reason this method is called an implant is because a titanium screw is implanted into the bone of the jaw where the former root of the missing tooth used to be. This is done via a minor surgical procedure.
Over a fairly short period of time, usually 6-12 weeks, the titanium screw fuses with the jaw bone and is absorbed to the point where it becomes one with the rest of the jaw bone, securing its place in the mouth.
The visible part of this titanium screw is capped by a fake tooth, or crown, that matches in color and shape the other teeth in a patient’s mouth. This fake tooth is non-removable and considered to be a permanent fixture in one’s mouth, and will be the same, if not better, than the original tooth.
Dental implants are nice because they are self-contained pieces that do not rely on other healthy teeth for installation. If anything goes wrong with an implant other teeth are not typically affected.
Dental Bridge
A dental bridge can also replace just one tooth, or multiple missing teeth in a row. The bridge requires healthy teeth on either side of the gap, however, as the prosthesis will be attached to the existing teeth.
The dental bridge does not require any surgical procedure, but it does require the teeth on either side of the bridge to be filed down somewhat in order to accept the application of the bridge. This prosthesis can be made to match both the color and shape of the teeth in your mouth so it looks very natural.
Dental bridges were widely accepted as the best solution for missing teeth for a long time.
The problem with bridges is that in the long run they can compromise the perfectly healthy teeth they are attached to. The fact that two existing teeth have to be filed down in order to attach the bridge makes these teeth susceptible to decay, bacterial plaque accumulations, periodontal disease, and possibly, in the worst case scenario, a root canal. Dental bridges are also harder to clean than an implant is because you cannot floss between the teeth in the bridge.
If you end up having a problem with a bridge, you are putting the healthy teeth on either side of the replacement tooth at risk since the healthy teeth had to be filed down to place the bridge. If either of the abutment teeth have any decay within them, the entire bridge will have to be removed as well. And, the fact that the replacement tooth relies on two other teeth for support puts extra strain on the original teeth that is more than they were really meant to endure.
Bridges are a quicker fix because they are a non-surgical repair. They are also less costly than a tooth implant; however the money you save up front may not be beneficial in the long run if anything were to happen to a bridge that would require it to be replaced.
