Sometimes gum disease, injury, decay or simply wear results in the loss of a tooth. A large gap in your smile can create significant problems for your dental health if it isn’t corrected. Over time your bite pressure may shift to other parts of your mouth to compensate for an inability to chew efficiently in the area of the missing tooth.

Neighboring teeth may begin to move about, moving into the gap and resulting in discomfort, pain and more problems down the road. Porcelain bridges “bridge the gap” in your smile. Your dentist creates a lifelike, functional bridge to correct your smile, restore your bite and alleviate your discomfort. A porcelain bridge is created out of metal, alloys and porcelain and utilizes the teeth on both sides of the gap as its supportive structure. After some preparation of the two neighboring teeth, crowns are created for them. A prosthetic tooth, or pontic, is fused between the crowns to fill the gap. A bridge is a semi-permanent dental restoration, meaning it can only be removed by a dentist, so you can rest assured that your porcelain bridge will be a lasting restoration to your oral health.