Now that you know you are going to need to replace a natural tooth with an artificial one, you have been weighing all the options. If you are on the fence at all, then you must be considering an option other than a ceramic implant. For a multitude of reasons, people start considering if they should first get a bridge, just for now, until they are ready to take that big step into oral surgery.
If you are struggling with this same conflict, lets sort it now before it is too late.
Getting a bridge will have a permanent and detrimental effect on the teeth nearest the tooth that needs replacing:
- In order to get a proper fit and bonding to the bridge, your healthy teeth will need to be filed down, stripped of their outside protective cover, made small enough to allow for the substantial bridgework to fit and be secure
- Should those nearby teeth not be in the greatest shape, then you may have to sacrifice additional teeth, further away, to bond the bridge to.
- Bridges have a finite life span.
– Ten years is about the max, but even that is not guaranteed.
– Bridges can be pulled off from eating sticky foods.
– Cracked or broken bridges can result from a variety of foods too. - Bridges and the areas around the bond can discolor.
- Since the nearby teeth must be compromised in order to secure the bridge, those sacrificial teeth are more prone to disease or rot.
- Eventually the healthy gum tissues will recede, shrink and pull away from the bridge. This can leave an unsightly or noticeable gap between the bridge and the gum line.
- Additionally, since there is not a tooth in your jawbone, your bone mass in that area will diminish over time. This can affect the surrounding teeth, especially if you have multiple teeth replaced. It can also affects your jaw line and the contours of your face.
- Bottom line: a bridge means you will need additional dental work just to maintain and support a tooth replacement that will still, no matter how well you take care of it, need replacing.
Would you believe me if I said that getting a ceramic implant would allow you to skip all that? Yes, there are a couple of visits to get the implant placed and set. There is a visit to ensure the procedure went well and that you have healed all the way. After that? After that you are set. Smile away and be confident that you have the closest thing to your natural teeth possible. Done. Feel good that you are supporting the rest of your teeth and even your overall health.