How Does A Replacement Tooth Stay In Place?

Replacing a lost tooth can help you regain confidence in your smile, and it can also make it easier to perform tasks like chewing and eating. A properly-placed dental prosthetic will be in place firmly enough to hold up whenever you use it for biting and chewing. Its cosmetic impact should be to make you look the way you did before you lost your tooth. Replacing a lost tooth can even make your risk for losing more teeth go down. So how does a replacement tooth stay in place so well? There are different answers to this question, because there are different prosthetic options available to you. A dental implant resides where your tooth root once did, and is fused with your jawbone. A dental bridge relies on support from two dental crowns, one on each side, to keep the pontic (the actual replacement tooth) where it is supposed to be.

Receiving A Dental Implant

One major upside for people who receive a dental implant is that the implant can do some of the work once done by your tooth root. This includes preserving the shape of your tooth socket, and helping support your jawbone’s health – even with other replacement types, tooth loss can lead to deterioration of the bone. A dummy tooth is fastened onto the implant, but only after your jaw has healed, and it is secure.

Receiving A Dental Bridge

A dental bridge does not offer benefits for your jaw health, but it can be vital to those who are not considered good candidates for a dental implant. The bridge consists of two dental crowns surrounding the pontic (or pontics – a bridge can replace up to three adjacent teeth).