Have you ever struggled with eating due to tooth loss? Missing teeth can be easily minimized as a superficial, aesthetic concern. However, they can severely impact your quality of life over time. This is why dentists recommend exploring missing teeth replacement options right after tooth loss.
From making it harder to chew hard foods to affecting how you speak, missing teeth can be very damaging—especially when you’re missing more than one tooth. Luckily, implant-supported bridges are a single treatment for these cases that can help fully restore your smile for years to come and make these struggles a thing of the past.
What Is an Implant-Supported Bridge?
As the name indicates, implant-supported bridges are a custom restoration that is attached to a dental implant for support.
Dental implants work by replicating the structure of a natural tooth. They consist of three parts:
- The implant post imitates your natural tooth roots. It’s made of titanium, a biocompatible material that can fuse with your jawbone (a process known as osseointegration). This makes the restoration as sturdy as your natural teeth.
- The abutment is a connector that attaches the implant to the crown. It is typically made of titanium, zirconia, or other materials.
- The customized dental crown is a prosthetic custom-designed to match your surrounding teeth in shape, size, and color. It sits on top of your gum line and is crafted at a specialized dental lab to ensure it blends perfectly with the rest of your teeth.
This structure ensures your implants are stable and long-lasting, withstanding the pressure of chewing all kinds of foods. For that reason, implants are one of the best dental restorative methods.
What Are the Benefits of Using Implant-Supported Restorations?
Dentists often recommend attaching restorations to dental implants because this combination makes a significant difference in function and appearance. Some of their benefits include:
- Enhanced Stability and Function: Implant-supported restorations are anchored directly to the jawbone. This keeps your new teeth securely fit and avoids slipping.
- Long Term Durability: Implants are made from biocompatible materials (usually titanium) and designed to last decades with proper care.
- Aesthetic Benefits: Implant-supported crowns or bridges look and feel like natural teeth. They help maintain a natural-looking smile and support your confidence when speaking and eating.
- Better Oral Hygiene and Maintenance: Dental implants must be cared for just as natural teeth. Brushing, flossing, and regular dental cleanings become easier with implant-supported restorations.
- Increased Comfort: Because implants become a part of your mouth’s structure, they eliminate the discomfort of removable dentures.
- Improved Quality of Life: Dental implants often improve patients' self-esteem and give them greater liberty in choosing what to eat. They also experience improved speech clarity.
- Preservation of Jawbone Health: Dental implants stimulate the jawbone, which helps prevent the bone loss that typically occurs when teeth are missing.
Implant-Supported Bridges vs. Traditional Bridges
Traditional dental bridges are still frequently used for dental restoration. They may be a solution for patients who cannot undergo dental implants. However, they do come with several drawbacks:
1. Damage to Adjacent Teeth
Bridges require grinding down healthy teeth on either side of the gap to place a dental crown that will support the prosthetic tooth (pontic). This permanently alters otherwise healthy teeth, which is always discouraged. It also makes them more prone to future decay or fracture.
2. Bone Loss in the Jaw
Unlike implants, traditional bridges do not stimulate the jawbone beneath the missing tooth.
Many patients don’t know that the jawbone in the area starts to shrink once they lose a tooth. In fact, 40-60% of the bone is lost in the first six months to one year after a tooth is extracted. Over time, this can increase the probability of further tooth loss in the area and even alter facial structure, causing wrinkles and leading to an overall sunken look.
3. Shorter Lifespan
While effective, bridges typically last 10–15 years, often requiring replacement due to wear, decay under the crowns, or structural failure.
On the other hand, implant-supported restorations can last more than 25 years with proper care. Additionally, when a replacement is needed, it’s often only the top prosthetic that needs to be changed.
4. Oral Hygiene Challenges
Bridges can make cleaning more difficult, especially around and beneath the pontic, because of their design and the way they interact with the gums and surrounding teeth.
In traditional bridges, the pontic has no root underneath; it simply rests on the gum. Food particles and plaque can become trapped underneath it, making it hard to clean with standard brushing or flossing. And because the bridge is a connected structure, you can’t floss between the teeth in a bridge like you would with natural teeth.
Flossing requires special tools, and poor hygiene can lead to gum disease or decay on supporting teeth.
5. Risk of Recurrent Decay
The supporting (abutment) teeth are more prone to decay, especially if the bridge is not perfectly sealed or oral hygiene is lacking. Sadly, if one supporting tooth fails, the entire bridge may need to be replaced.
Implant-Supported Bridges vs. Partials
Partial dentures are a common tooth replacement option, but they have several drawbacks compared to implant-supported restorations. Some of these include:
1. Reduced Stability and Function
Partial dentures are removable, which means they can shift or move during eating or speaking. They can make it tricky to eat harder or stickier foods.
2. Bone Loss Over Time
Like bridges, partial dentures rest on the gums and do not stimulate the jawbone like dental implants. Without this stimulation, the underlying bone can deteriorate.
3. Less Natural Look and Feel
Partial dentures may have metal clasps or acrylic bases that are visible when speaking or smiling. They can feel bulky in the mouth and may not match the natural contour of the gums, teeth, and implants.
These clasps can also strain or loosen the supporting teeth over time, potentially leading to wear, mobility, or decay.
4. Discomfort and Sore Spots
Because they rest on soft tissues like your gums, partials can cause sore spots or irritation, especially if they don’t fit properly.
5. Daily Removal and Maintenance
Partials must be removed daily for cleaning and left soaking in water overnight. Some patients find this inconvenient or embarrassing.
Explore the Best Missing Teeth Replacement Options at 3020 Dental Implants
Severe tooth loss can be devastating, affecting far more than just your mouth. When eating your favorite foods becomes difficult and you feel self-conscious about smiling in social situations, you may find yourself gradually withdrawing from activities that once brought you joy. You don't have to accept this as your new reality
If you want to explore available dental restoration options, 3020 Dental Implants can help. From advanced technology to the knowledge of specialized oral surgeons, we’re committed to restoring your smile in a way that best supports your long-term oral health. Contact us today to learn more about our options!
