Teeth-related issues like missing teeth, overcrowding, tooth decay cracks, and trauma fractures can interfere with your routine because of the pain and discomfort. Healthy teeth should last for a lifetime without decay or infection. It would help if you cared for your overall oral health for your natural teeth to last the rest of your life. Nevertheless, despite good oral habits, your teeth are susceptible to infections resulting in removal and gaps in the mouth. These spaces can affect the appearance and functionality of your teeth.

Thankfully, dental experts have devised various restorative dentistry techniques to restore the aesthetics of your teeth and give you confidence after the loss or damage of your tooth. The ultimate and widespread solution to missing teeth is crowns and bridges. At Washington Dental in Lomita, we provide these services at reasonable prices to bring back your beautiful and functional smile.

Restorative Dentistry Advantages

Your teeth are originally resilient and healthy. The best way to maintain this natural feel and appearance is through regular visits to the dentist and brushing and flossing the teeth twice daily for around two minutes. Nevertheless, you can have missing or damaged teeth even with proper care. The American Dental Association reports that adults aged 20 to 64 have at least three lost or decomposed teeth. You do not expect your solid and good-looking teeth to look ugly or weak one day, but it can happen. However, you can consult a restorative dentist for dental solutions even when it happens.

The effects of having decayed or missing teeth are devastating. You will have problems socializing because you fear smiling or talking, exposing the decayed teeth or gaps in the mouth. If you have multiple damaged or lost teeth, you will have problems chewing or biting, denying you the enjoyment of your original teeth. Fortunately, multiple general dentistry services are available to help address these oral problems.

The most widespread restorative dentistry treatments are dental crowns and bridges. You will need a dental cap if at least one of your teeth is fractured or decayed and repairs are impossible. Our dentists at Washington Dental in Lomita recommend crowns when you visit us with this oral problem. Crowns will help your teeth regain their original feel, strength, and functionality, enabling you to enjoy life better.

Your dental expert will recommend a bridge if you have extracted or lost teeth. Bridges are fixed restorations or artificial teeth that replace one or more lost teeth by connecting a prosthesis with two crowns or adjacent natural teeth. The crowns or natural teeth providing anchorage are called abutments.

The significant benefit of these two restorative treatments is that they restore your teeth functionality. Crowns and bridges fix your chewing problems enabling you to enjoy various meals, thus having a balanced diet. Additionally, dental services restore the beauty of your teeth, giving you the confidence to interact with people and show your real personality.

Also, restorative dentistry addresses the pain linked to having gaps in the mouth due to lost, fractured, or decayed teeth. If your teeth are cracked or filled with cavities, you will experience much pain until a general dentist addresses the problem. The best way to manage the pain and discomfort is to replace the teeth damaged beyond repair with bridges and crowns. Replacing lost teeth prevents jawbone deterioration and loss, which, if left to continue, can cause loss of facial structure.

Finally, restorative services like bridges and crowns are the answer when looking forward to regaining your teeth' original feel and appearance. Therefore, if lost, fractured, or damaged teeth hinder your overall appearance and teeth functionality, call our dentists at Washington Dental in Lomita for a thorough oral exam and to find the proper treatment.

Dental Crowns

Crown restorations, otherwise called “caps,” are restoratives that protect severely broken teeth, restore decayed teeth and replace other damaged dental crowns. The restoration covers the affected tooth with a unique material. Therefore, crown restoration is the answer when you have broken teeth, fractured or chipped veneers, teeth aches, or lost fillings. Also, crowns can be placed on top of dental implants to act as artificial teeth giving you a natural feel, functionality, and shape.

Dental Crowns Material

Crowns made of ceramic or porcelain material mimic the color of your natural teeth. The material is resilient and highly durable as these restorations are made to function like your original teeth. And when looking for a more durable treatment, you can choose cast gold, although it is unsuitable for visible teeth because it does not resemble your original teeth.

If you aim to strengthen the damaged teeth, your dental professional will recommend porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns. The metal interior reinforces the strength of the restoration, while the porcelain exterior gives it a natural look. Also, the restoration has a zirconia coat to augment its durability. Other crown materials comprise stainless steel, suitable for children, and all-resin dental crowns that are affordable but susceptible to breakage.

Stainless steel caps are temporarily utilized for permanent teeth as your crowns are fabricated in the dental lab. They are quick to install, pocket-friendly, and a favorable option for children.

With various materials to choose from for your dental caps, it can be challenging to make an informed decision. It is recommended to speak to your dental expert to explain the merits and disadvantages of these materials to pick the material that suits your oral needs and expectations.

Why You Should Choose Dental Crowns

It would be best to consider a crown restoration to restore the original teeth' shape, dimension, and forte. The restorations prevent broken teeth from further breakage by protecting them from external pressure. If the affected tooth were left that way for a long time, it would lead to more oral problems like bacterial infections that can spread to your neck or head.

Similarly, the chances of fracturing are high when your teeth have been eaten away by cavities and filled with large fillings. Crowns can protect teeth like these from fracturing. Besides, when you have a bridge restoration, you can use dental crowns to support the existing abutment if they are weak enough to support the bridge.

When you have malocclusion or bite problems because the upper and lower jaws or teeth do not fit together, crowns can help retain the overall structural reliability of the bite and mouth. Bad bites happen when you have overcrowded teeth, underbites, open, and crossbites. Certain occlusions can affect your balance and posture.

Also, when you want to enhance the beauty of your smile, crowns can help. Installing these restorations will restore the look of your cracked, chipped, broken, or crooked teeth. You will express your personality better with caps because you are confident when interacting.

Another reason your general dentist will install dental crowns is if you have undergone a dental implant procedure. Again, when your teeth have decayed beyond repair, you are not a suitable candidate for dental fillings; crowns will be the answer to the oral problem.

Lastly, when a child’s primary teeth enamel develops white spots, it indicates wearing off of the tooth surface because of decay. You can salvage the child’s teeth through crowns, which cover the affected tooth and prevent further decay. Furthermore, your general dentist will recommend dental crowns for your child when they require a highly invasive dental procedure, and their age, medical history, and behavior are unfavorable for administering local anesthesia.

Crowns Vs. Veneers

Crowns differ from veneers in that veneers only cover the front surface of your teeth, while crowns cover the whole area over the gum line. Caps can even extend to the root's surface based on your oral needs. Again, veneers are supported by your primary tooth's structure, while crowns fill spaces left by missing or damaged teeth.

Consultation and Treatment Planning

When the tooth decay is too severe for the dentist to use veneers or composite bonding, or when you have been treated for a root canal, the dentist will discuss a dental crown as the appropriate treatment. Whether you want an artificial tooth for your dental implant or to restore a decayed tooth, your caps will be fabricated by a dental lab technician or in your dentist’s office, depending on the material used.

During the consultation, your dental expert will take an impression of your teeth to determine the exact size and shape of the prosthesis. An excellent dentist will discuss what you should expect from the treatment and whether they will use a local anesthetic or sedation to make the procedure comfortable and virtually painless. If you need temporary crowns before the permanent ones are ready, the dental expert will discuss the duration for which you will be wearing the temporary crowns.

Treatment for Dental Crowns

On the treatment date, the dental expert will apply local anesthesia to numb the surrounding tissues of the affected teeth and the neighboring gingiva.

The dental expert will extract the tooth’s enamel on the top, back, and front surfaces to allow for the placement of the crowns. Enamel removal is done using a drill or a rough bur. When the damage is extreme, and the natural tooth surface is insufficient to anchor crowns, the general dentist will add crown buildup to create a robust foundation.

The next phase involves creating a model of your teeth using a scanner, impression paste, or putty. The impression goes to a lab for fabrication. Your dental expert will install the impermanent crown and allow you to wait for the permanent restoration. And when the final restoration is ready, you will return for the final phase of the treatment. The stage involves removing the temporary restoration and adjusting the permanent one to align with your teeth' structure and bite.

Dental Bridges

A bridge is a fixed restoration that replaces one or several lost teeth by connecting the prosthesis to the adjacent implants or primary teeth. The prosthesis, or fake tooth, is an antic, while the supporting tooth is the abutment.

Various materials, including gold, porcelain, or alloys, are used to make antics.

1. Reasons for Installing Bridges

Your dental professional will discuss bridges during the first consultation if your objective for restorative oral treatment is to restore a flawless smile. Smiling when you have gaps left by missing teeth can be challenging, particularly in public. Dental bridges can be the answer if you want the confidence to make the most of your social life.

Similarly, you need bridges if tooth loss adversely affects speech and chewing. The restorations will bring back your speech and chewing, enhancing overall tooth functionality.

Moreover, dental bridges can help restore shape and appearance by preventing jawbone resorption when you have lost your facial structure due to several missing teeth. That way, you will regain your face’s structure, giving you the confidence you need.

Missing teeth cause a bad bite because force is not evenly distributed in the mouth. Nevertheless, when you fill the open sockets with bridges, even power is distributed throughout the mouth, improving your speech and bite. Dental bridges also help realign your teeth after they shift due to spaces left by missing teeth.

2. Bridges Types

Like crowns, Washington Dental in Lomita offers several dental bridge options. Discuss these options with your dentist to find a suitable one.

The traditional bridge is one of the famous bridge types we offer in our general dentistry services. The restoration consists of one or multiple fake teeth linked together by crowns or abutment teeth. The restorations are cemented to the adjacent teeth, anchoring the bridge. Therefore, when you lose a molar, a traditional bridge is sufficiently strong to replace it so you can return to your chewing habits. The only downside of the conventional bridge is that it does not preserve your primary teeth because it involves removing enamel. And because enamel does not grow back, you must depend on crowns permanently.

The other type is the cantilever bridge. This one resembles the conventional bridge but only differs because it requires an abutment tooth from one side to support the restoration instead of two abutment teeth from both sides. Your dental professional will prefer this treatment if only one healthy tooth or crown is available on one side of the open socket to anchor the artificial teeth.

Also, when you have lost several teeth, implant-anchored bridges can restore the beauty and functionality of your teeth. Instead of abutment teeth like crowns to support the bridges, these rely on implants strategically placed in the mouth to anchor the bridge. The disadvantage of this treatment is that it is highly invasive as it involves surgery. However, after recovery, the bridges are comfortable and sufficiently anchored.

Other dental bridge types include Maryland, fixed-movable, and hybrid bridges.

3. The Process of Installing Bridges

In your first appointment with the dentist, they will scrutinize your teeth and bridges to determine suitability. After you have decided bridges are the appropriate treatment, the next stage involves discussing the options for the materials to be used to make the restorations. Your material choice depends on your dental insurance coverage and whether you grind or clench your teeth.

Also, the general dentist will conduct an x-ray on your teeth and take models to help plan the treatment. Based on the number of consecutive teeth missing, the expert will cement the abutment teeth and attach the pontics.

The first stage you should expect in the actual treatment is the contouring of the abutment to accommodate the crown. The general dentist will model your teeth to develop an impression for fabricating the bridge, crowns, and artificial teeth.

In the meantime, the expert will attach impermanent bridges to protect the gums and the unprotected teeth from damage.

Once the permanent restorations are ready, you will visit your dentist for the second appointment, which involves removing the temporary bridges and placing the permanent restorations. If the bridge does not fit perfectly, you will require additional visits to the dentist for adjustments.

When you want a fixed bridge, they will temporarily cement the restoration for a week to see if it fits correctly. If it does, they will permanently cement the bridge.

4. Causes of Dental Bridge Failure

Even with thorough preparation, planning, and execution of a bridge procedure, sometimes the treatment can fail. Poor oral health habits are the leading cause of bridge failure. If you do not brush and floss your teeth as instructed, plaque buildup will eventually cause bacterial growth and infection, causing gum disease.

If your dentist does not do the cementation to the required standards, the bridge can lose retention and fall off. Also, the pontics can fracture after the treatment, requiring replacement.

Biological failures like severe injuries, cavities, and gum disease can cause your bridges to fail.

Lastly, accidents during cementing, like a color mismatch, rough margins, or wrong contouring, can affect the restoration's aesthetics, resulting in treatment failure. Also, gum recession, drifting of teeth, and wearing off, in the long run, can reduce the beauty of your restoration.

5. Risks Linked with Bridges

Even if bridges are safe, some complications are associated with the treatment. Experiencing these complications does not indicate that your dentist did not do a good job. They could have put all safety measures in place for the procedure, but still, you experienced complications. The prevalent risks of the treatment are:

• Allergic reaction to the dental bridge material.
• Bruising on the teeth or mouth.
• Developing bacterial infections.
• Dental bridge chipping, loosening, or loss.

If you experience any complications after treatment, arrange another meeting with your dentist.

Crowns and Bridges Aftercare

You must establish a good oral care regimen after you have received your dental restoration. Like your primary teeth, crowns and bridges require proper care to maximize their use.

Adequately caring for the restorations means brushing and flossing the teeth twice a day to prevent plaque buildup and visiting your dentist twice a year for teeth cleaning. Also, use an antiseptic mouthwash to swish your teeth and avoid decay, periodontal disease, and continued tooth loss.

If you experience problems practicing healthy oral hygiene habits, talk to your dental expert to demonstrate acceptable practices. A reputable dentist at Washington Dental in Lomita will demonstrate the proper technique for brushing and flossing your teeth to prevent bacteria buildup. Again, when you regularly visit your dentist, they will identify any oral issues affecting your restorations early and arrest them before they turn severe. A mouth guard will be recommended when you have teeth grinding or clenching problems.

Also, it will take time before you are used to eating with the dental bridges. However, as time passes, you will be used to the restorations, but until this happens, our dentists at Washington Dental in Lomita recommend that you stick to soft foods. The food should be in small pieces to lower the force you must apply when chewing. Even as you stick to soft foods, ensure your diet is balanced to improve your general health.

Keeping the abutment teeth healthy is also critical because they anchor the bridge. If the abutment is weak, the bridge treatment will fail. However, when the anchoring teeth are healthy, the bridge will be stable and comfortable because of the robust foundation. Again, please avoid using your restorations to open parcels because it can cause breakage or cracking.

With proper care, bridges can last no more than fifteen years. You will save money and other resources, like time, because your teeth will be healthy for a prolonged period.

Similarly, crowns last around the same period as dental bridges. Nevertheless, the duration of the restoration depends on wear and tear and your oral hygiene. Also, avoiding the gritting and grinding of your teeth can extend the life of your treatment.

Find a Knowledgeable General Dentistry Service Near Me

Several dental clinics in California offer dental crowns and bridges because of their popularity. Nevertheless, despite the many clinics flooding the market, finding the right one for the right services is challenging. It would help if you found a trustworthy dentist to address your problem and satisfy your expectations.

Washington Dental offers quality and trusted restoration services in Lomita. If you experience an oral problem that can be fixed with our services, do not adjourn your appointment because procrastination will worsen your oral issues. Call us today at 310-326-5183 to commence treatment.