Many patients in the Southern Tier have a dental bridge that was placed fifteen or twenty years ago and has served them well ever since. It became part of their smile so long ago that they rarely think about it.
Eventually, though, many bridges begin to show their age. When they do, the issue is usually not the bridge itself but the natural teeth holding it in place. The encouraging part is that today's options for replacing a bridge are better than they have ever been.
Vestal Dental Associates has been restoring smiles in the Greater Binghamton area since 1955. Here is how a bridge works, the signs that one needs attention, and what your choices look like when it is time for a change.
A traditional bridge replaces a missing tooth by attaching a false tooth, called a pontic, to crowns placed on the teeth on either side. Those supporting teeth are called abutments, and the whole bridge is made as one connected piece.
That connection is a source of strength, and it also means the bridge depends on both abutment teeth staying healthy. The edge where each crown meets the tooth, near the gumline, is the area that needs the most care over time. Plaque collects there easily, cleaning under the pontic takes extra effort, and decay that starts at the edge of a crown can progress beneath it before anything is visible.
Meanwhile, the bone beneath the pontic has been gradually changing since the original tooth was lost. Without a root to stimulate it, that area of the ridge slowly narrows, which becomes important when planning what comes next.
A bridge that feels loose is worth calling about soon. Looseness often means the seal on one abutment has failed, and addressing it early gives you the widest range of options.
The right choice depends mainly on the condition of the abutment teeth and the bone in the gap. A thorough exam, digital x-rays, and 3D imaging on our Orthophos SL 3D system give us a clear picture of both.
When both abutment teeth are still healthy and well supported, replacing the old bridge with a new one is a reliable, well-proven choice. Our crowns and bridges page explains how they are made and fitted.
Many patients choose to replace the missing tooth with a single tooth dental implant and restore each former abutment with its own crown. Every tooth then stands independently, so you can floss between them normally, and the implant stops further bone loss in that spot. Crowns for the natural teeth can often be designed and milled in a single visit with our CEREC same day crown technology, then stained and glazed in our in-office furnace for a natural finish.
If one or both abutment teeth cannot be saved, implants can take their place as the anchors for a new bridge. This keeps the bridge design while resting it on supports that cannot decay.
Some patients have more than one aging bridge, or several restorations reaching the end of their service at the same time. In those cases, planning the whole mouth together often produces a better result than replacing pieces one at a time. Our full mouth reconstruction page describes that approach.
Where the bone under the old pontic has thinned, bone grafting can rebuild it before an implant is placed. For a side-by-side look at each type of tooth replacement, see our complete comparison of implants, bridges, and dentures.
Replacing existing dental work involves more than the missing tooth. Your bite, the neighboring teeth, the gum line, and the appearance of your smile all need to work together. Prosthodontics, one of the twelve recognized dental specialties, focuses on exactly that kind of planning.
Our in-house prosthodontist, Dr. Fritz Zietsman, completed three years of specialty training at the Eastman Institute for Oral Health and works alongside our doctors on implant and restorative cases. You can read more in our prosthodontics overview and in our post on what a prosthodontist does.
An aging bridge is a common part of long-term dental care, and catching changes early keeps your choices open. Whether a new bridge or an implant is the better fit, you will see your options clearly before any decision is made.
Patients come to us from Vestal, Johnson City, Owego, and across the region, including many from Endwell for dental implants and restorative care. Call Vestal Dental Associates at (607) 785-3339 or request a consultation online, and we will help you find the most comfortable, lasting way forward.