What Are the Benefits of Choosing a Dental Implant Over a Traditional Fixed Bridge?

What Are the Benefits of Choosing a Dental Implant Over a Traditional Fixed Bridge?

March 1, 2023

Tooth loss is a common problem. It’s essential to get a replacement after losing a tooth; it helps the teeth maintain the correct alignment. In addition, teeth replacement helps prevent speaking or eating difficulties and preserves the facial shape.

The most common choices for teeth replacement are dental implants and bridges.

There are different types of bridges, including cantilever, traditional, implant-supported, and Maryland dental bridges.

Let’s look at a traditional fixed bridge.

What is a Traditional Fixed Bridge?

A bridge is a restoration that fills the space left by one or more teeth. A tooth can sometimes fall out due to structural damage or severe decay.

A traditional fixed bridge has two or more crowns and a false tooth or teeth that are connected. The fake teeth fill the gap while the crowns are placed over the natural teeth adjacent to the space to provide support.

The dentist files or shaves down the adjacent natural teeth to create space for the crowns to have a correct alignment with the opposing teeth and adequate surface area to enable a strong connection.

For dental bridges in Emerson to work, the natural teeth need to be healthy and free from decay. The bridge is cemented into place, making this procedure a permanent solution.

Traditional bridges can be made from porcelain fused to metal or ceramic. They are used when a missing tooth leaves a gap, with natural teeth on both sides.

What is a Dental Implant?

A tooth implant is a metallic fixture that is surgically placed deep in the jawbone below your gums to facilitate the mounting of the artificial tooth. The implant becomes anchored to the bone through osseointegration, providing stable support you can rely on when eating.

An abutment is a device that connects the tooth implant and the artificial tooth. The osseointegration process takes about 3 to 6 months to be complete, and once that happens, our dentist in Emerson attaches the abutment to the post. The abutment provides the surface where the dental crown (fake tooth) is placed.

The crown can be customized to match the color of the patient’s other teeth and to fit the mouth correctly.

The types of dental implants include subperiosteal and endosteal. The jawbone’s shape, health, and size will help determine the implant process that’s best suited for the patient. At Emerson Family Dental, our dentist will offer the best recommendation.

The best candidates for teeth implants are individuals with one or several missing teeth. Tooth loss can result from tooth decay, clenching or grinding teeth, facial injury, tooth root fracture, and gum disease.

Let’s look at the benefits of choosing teeth implants over traditional bridges.

Benefits of choosing dental implants over a traditional fixed bridge

  1. Durability

Compared to traditional bridge teeth, implants are more durable and long-lasting. That is because implants are attached directly to the jawbone, ensuring they function and last long like natural teeth.

With proper care, teeth implants can last for a lifetime. The titanium metal post is durable and resistant to decay and gum problems.

Dental bridges have to be replaced every 5 to 7 years, but by practicing good oral hygiene, they can last for ten years or more.

To get dental implants, schedule an appointment with our Emerson dental clinic.

  1. Oral Hygiene

It’s much easier to maintain implants than bridges. In addition, a dental implant can replace an individual tooth without affecting the other teeth making routing home hygiene easier.

To keep the area beneath a traditional bridge’s pontics (artificial teeth) clean and free from plaque, you will need to use a particular type of floss and other dental hygiene tools.

  1. Appearance

In as much as dental bridges look natural, implants look and feel like real teeth. In addition, the crowns are custom-made to match the color of a person’s teeth.

In situations where the patient gets an implant immediately after tooth extraction, it helps preserve the natural bone level and enhance the appearance of the dental work.

  1. Long-term oral health

Implants don’t harm the teeth around them, and you are less likely to get decay and cavities. However, one will experience bone and gum tissue loss at the place under the bridge where the tooth was missing. That can have a destabilizing effect on the neighboring teeth.

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