Even with the most diligent attention to oral hygiene and regular dental checkups, damage to teeth and tooth loss is common. A dentist in Kitchener has a comprehensive menu of options available to resolve serious issues with the health of your teeth and to resolve missing teeth. Two of the most common options that a dentist near you may recommend to deal with damaged or missing teeth are dental crowns and dental bridges.
Here’s an introduction to these common dental solutions that may be recommended by a dentist near you. This information will help you to understand just why they’ve been recommended and what they can achieve.
What are dental crowns?
Dental crowns that you can obtain from a dentist in Kitchener are cap or thimble-like restorations that slip over a damaged tooth. Once in place, the crown protects a structurally vulnerable tooth from damage, maintains the shape of a tooth with multiple fillings, and protects a tooth that has been sealed after root canal treatment.
Reasons to consider getting dental crowns
Dental crowns obtained from a dentist near you can resolve a wide range of issues with teeth and dental work performed to restore oral health and dental function. The following are several reasons why a dentist in Kitchener may recommend that you receive a dental crown:
- To protect a tooth weakened by serious tooth decay, repeated dental work, or cracks
- To restore a broken tooth to full dental function
- To anchor and support a dental bridge
- To cover and a misshapen and/or discoloured tooth, and to define a new shape with preferred colour
- To cover a dental implant
- To protect a tooth that had undergone root canal treatment to prevent reinfection and restore dental function
What are dental bridges?
A dental bridge is a restoration built from a combination of an artificial tooth (or teeth) and crowns placed over healthy teeth on either side of the missing natural tooth. The traditional dental bridge is one held in place by two crowns — one on either side of the missing tooth or teeth. There are other types of bridges to address particular situations. Those include: Maryland bridges that attach to the back of neighbouring teeth rather than over the top of neighbouring teeth; implant-supported bridges that don’t rely on any natural teeth but are held in place with an implant or implants; and cantilever bridges that rely on just one neighbouring tooth for support.
Reasons to consider getting a dental bridge
Dental bridges obtained from a dentist in Kitchener are a flexible solution for tooth loss. Solving tooth loss is important due to the wide range of negative consequences that can flow from a gap left in your jaw. Those negative consequences — all of which can be resolved with dental bridges — include:
- Aesthetic harm to the appearance of your smile
- Prolonged inability to eat and chew naturally which can affect your nutrition and health
- Degradation of your ability to speak naturally
- Loss of physical support provided by the presence of teeth to define the shape of your face
- Unconscious adjustments to newly and inconsistently distributed forces and pressure while you chew and bite
- The natural tendency of remaining natural teeth to twist and shift into gaps left behind with negative results on the alignment of your teeth and bite
If you have received a recommendation to consider dental bridges or dental crowns near you, it is because your dentist has identified potentially serious ramifications of a weakened, damaged, or vulnerable tooth, or of missing teeth. Getting dental bridges and dental crowns in Kitchener can solve many of those issues. To confirm whether a bridge or crown is appropriate for you and your dental needs, contact a dentist near you.