Bridges

"The atmosphere at Dr. Blackley's office is so relaxing. The staff is personable, very professional and they listen to what the problem is. The work I had done was superb! I am so glad I found Dr. Blackley."

— Tom Slane

Bridges

Why bother replacing a single tooth? As we grow and our permanent teeth develop, a bite pattern is developed, this means facial, neck and jaw muscles are trained to work with our own particular pattern.

Even tiny alterations can cause discomfort and pain in the neck, jaw and head, and leave the gums and teeth open to bacteria, damage and decay. Dental bridges immediately address these issues because they are connected to pre-existing permanent teeth and work to re-establish traditional bite patterns.

Bridges are removable devices intended to replace missing teeth, and permanently fitted into the mouth using surrounding teeth as anchors. If there are healthy teeth on both sides of a space, a bridge can be used to replace the teeth missing from the middle.

Bridges are made into a solid unit that is permanently cemented onto "anchor" teeth on each side. Portions of the "anchor" teeth, about the same amount as for a crown, are removed during this process. If there are no "anchor" teeth, implants may be used as the "anchor" to cement a bridge to.

If the teeth on either side of the space are healthy, an implant is preferable to removing good tooth structure.