Dental Bridges

Dental Bridges are false teeth that replace missing teeth by anchoring to one or two of the neighbouring teeth. The false tooth is known as the pontic and the anchoring teeth are known as abutments.

Conventional Bridges: This involves preparing the neighbouring teeth (abutments) so that they become like crowns/caps and the false tooth (pontic) is then fused to the abutment crowns. This type of bridge can be made in gold, ceramic, or gold/ceramic combination.

  • The average lifespan for dental bridges is around 10-15 years, this is much longer than adhesive bridges.
  • These offer a fixed option for replacing gaps for those who do not wish to have implant surgery.

Maryland bridges: involve no preparation or very little preparation of the inside of one or two neighboring teeth (abutments) and the false tooth (pontic) is then bonded using wings to the inside wall of the neighboring teeth. This type of bridge can also be made in gold, ceramic or gold/ceramic combination.

  • Very little or no preparation of the neighbouring abutment teeth is necessary thus preserving them for longer.
  • Often cheaper than conventional bridges as less clinical time and lab time is required.
  • Likelihood of root canal treatment becoming necessary with maryland bridges is very remote.

Cantiliver Bridges: This type of bridge involves capping just one neighboring tooth (abutment) and the false tooth (pontic) bonds to this one neighboring tooth. This type of bridge can also be made in gold, ceramic or gold/ceramic combination.

  • De-bonding of this bridge is more common than conventional bridges.
  • Average lifespan is around 5 years, although some last longer.
  • Generally unsuitable for back missing teeth and more suited for missing front teethAesthetic Dental Zone - Bridge Treatment

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Dental Crowns

A crown is a full tooth cover restoration that is placed over a cracked, broken, root filled or a heavily filled tooth to protect the tooth against fracture Dental crowns are similar in shape and shade to dental veneers except that crowns cover all the surfaces of a tooth whereas veneers only cover the visible outside surface of the tooth.

 

Types of crowns

  • Ceramic Crown: Cosmetically these crowns look the best and are usually indicated for front teeth. These crowns have no grey metal inside them, so if in time the gum recedes, there will be no grey metal margin on show around the crown
  • Metal Ceramic Crown: These crowns have a metal core inside and porcelain bonded to their outside. The core inside can be made from precious, semi-precious or non-precious metals and it provides the strength behind these crowns. However the porcelain bonded to the metal cores is not very strong and from time to time can fracture.Metal Ceramic crowns are usually used on back teeth although some dentists use them for front teeth as well. The aesthetics of Metal Ceramic crowns is not as good as all ceramic crowns, however their strength is higher.
  • Strength wise, depending on the type of the crown, most of the ceramic crowns are as strong as the conventional crowns. An example of this would be Zirconium containing crowns that have a tooth coloured Zirconium core with porcelain on top.

 

Reasons for having a dental crown

If a significant part of a tooth is lost to dental decay and there is a risk that if a filling is used to restore the tooth, the filling could come out or fracture. Crowns are a lot stronger that fillings and better able to protect against tooth fracture

During root canal treatment, a large portion of the tooth is removed and the remaining tooth tissue can fracture and discolour after root canal treatment. A crown can increase the success rate of a root canal treated tooth and protect the structure of the tooth and increase its longevity and its aesthetics.

If a large part of a tooth has fractured and the rest of the tooth is at risk of further fracture, a dental crown can protect the remaining part of the tooth from fracture.

For cosmetic purposes, people who have large mismatched fillings on their front teeth may opt to have crowns to improve their smile.

All crowns made at the Aesthertic Dental Zone are sent away and made in Sweden or Germany

To book your consultation with one of our highly experienced dental surgeons please call 020 8299 1434 and a member of our friendly receptionists will be happy to help you.

Alternatively you can email us at: info@dulwichdentists.com

Aesthetic Dental Zone Crowns