Bridgework
What are bridges?
A bridge is a way of replacing a missing tooth with a fixed solution. There are many different designs of bridges, but the most common is a fixed bridge, which is made by placing crowns on the teeth either side of the space, and then joining the crowns together by placing a solid crown in the space to replace the missing tooth. Because this type of bridge uses joined crowns, cleaning the teeth in the area will be more difficult. A well-designed bridge should allow effective daily cleaning.
What goes wrong with bridges?
Just like crowns, a bridge must fit the supporting teeth tightly – if not, then cleaning the bridge will be difficult and the teeth supporting the bridge may decay or get gum disease. Sometimes a bridge will come off repeatedly. This may be due to a variety of factors but the size, shape, and relationship to opposing teeth should be considered as possible problems as well as the way the bridge fits on the supporting teeth.