When you have missing or broken teeth, you don't need to hide your smile. Dr. Michael Pugh is a dentist at Artistic Dentistry, located in Huntsville, AL, and a dentist like him can close the gaps in your smile with a dental bridge.

What Are Dental Bridges?

Dental bridges are literal bridges for any gaps in your teeth created by a missing tooth or teeth. A bridge consists of two teeth working as an anchor with a false tooth or teeth in between them. The anchor teeth are known as abutment teeth, with the false teeth known as pontics. A dentist will offer pontics made from gold, porcelain, alloy, or a combination of materials. Your natural teeth or dental implants support the dental bridge.

Dental bridges are permanent appliances and can be made up of several pieces fused to fill open spaces in your mouth and provide a better alternative to partial dentures.

Types of Dental Bridges

There are four main types of dental bridges offered by your dentist:

1. Traditional fixed bridge: most common and consists of a crown on either side of the pontic or false teeth.
2. Maryland dental bridge: used to replace the front teeth and uses porcelain instead of crowns bonded to the back of your teeth. Also known as a resin-bonded bridge.
3. Implant-support bridge: the dentist will place a dental implant for any missing teeth and then apply this bridge over them in a later procedure.
4. Cantilever bridge: When one side of the gap contains a single crown, the dentist will anchor a natural tooth and the pontic onto the natural tooth.

Advantages of Dental Bridges

When you come in for your consultation appointment with Dr. Pugh in Huntsville, AL, the dentist will perform an exam and determine if you are a candidate for a dental bridge. The advantages that come after receiving a dental bridge are many, and they include:

• Restoring your natural smile
• Maintaining a typical facial structure because you are preventing jaw bone loss from the previously missing tooth or teeth
• You are restoring your ability to chew food properly
• Maintain normal speech function
• You prevent any further dental problems, such as nearby teeth moving into the space of your missing teeth, leading to further complications.

Not everyone is a good candidate for a dental bridge, but you and your dentist can discuss this and other ways to get your smile back today. Call Dr. Pugh at Artistic Dentistry today. He is the dentist you need, located in the Huntsville, AL, area at phone (256) 536-3386.