Originally posted on https://crawfordjarvisdental.com/the-dental-bridge-vs-implant-mystery-revealed-finding-whats-best-for-you/
If you’ve lost a tooth, we know that you want to get it fixed as soon as possible. After all, studies show that your confidence with your smile has a direct impact on your self-esteem, your relationship building, and your social perception.
In this case, most dentists will give you two options: a dental bridge or a dental implant. Choosing what method you’re going to use to fix your problem is important for your overall satisfaction with your teeth, your healing, your bank account, and more.
So what’s the real difference with a dental bridge vs. implant?
In this post, we go over the details of each, the pros and cons, and more.
What’s a Dental Implant?
Losing a tooth means more than just losing the shiny white part everyone sees — aka the “crown” of the tooth. It also means losing the tooth root that is situated in your jawbone.
A dental implant will reconstruct the crown and the root of the tooth with artificial parts. They’re implanted into your actual jawbone, which bonds the implant with your jawbone.
Once the bone has formed around your new metal tooth root (or implant), your dentist will connect a high-quality, artificial “tooth” to the implant.
Pros of a Dental Implant
Dental implants are highly durable and often last a lifetime. They’re also more easily assimilated into your jaw and bone, which makes it easier to integrate into your gums, jaw, and alongside your other existing teeth.
Aesthetically, dental implants are superior to bridges since the color can come to almost exactly match your natural enamel.
Because of how these implants are implanted, it makes it easy to treat it like a normal tooth. You won’t have to worry about excess plaque build-up, big changes to oral hygiene, later replacement, and more.
Cons of a Dental Implant
Because of the high-quality materials and the intensive implant and treatment process, dental implants tend to be more expensive than other treatment options (like dental bridges).
What’s a Dental Bridge?
A dental bridge fills the gap where the missing tooth is by creating a “bridge,” connecting an implant to the two adjacent teeth.
Pros of a Dental Bridge
The biggest advantage to dental bridges is they’re more affordable.
They’re also a much less intense procedure compared to dental implants since nothing is being implanted into bone. It’s more of a “surface level” solution compared to implants. This means it’s a faster process, too.
Cons of a Dental Bridge
Dental bridges aren’t as durable as implants. Bridges aren’t long-lasting like implants are, either, so you’ll likely need to replace them multiple times over your life.
They also can create problems for the surrounding teeth and tissues because of the strain the bridge can create. “Filling” the tooth gap also doesn’t address underlying issues, which implants often do.
Also, dental bridges can often lead to excess plaque build-up and other issues. This may require you to pay special attention to dental hygiene with new brushing and flossing techniques, more frequent check-ups, and more.
Bridge vs. Implant: Which Is Right for You?
Both dental bridges and implants offer solutions for tooth loss that will solve your problem.
When choosing a bridge vs. implant, it’s going to largely depend on your budget, your priorities, and your dentist’s recommendation.
Want a professional to help you decide what’s best for your situation?
Contact us today to set up a consultation.