Many people who have missing teeth or gaps between teeth get a dental bridge to restore their smile and have the ability to chew properly. There are several types of dental bridges depending on the type of restorative work that a dentist needs to do. A dental bridge restores the gap that is created by one or more missing teeth. It is made up of two crowns for teeth on either side of the gap with a false tooth in between. The two capped teeth serve as an anchor to the false tooth or teeth. The dental term for these false teeth is pontics and they are made of gold, metallic alloys, porcelain or a combination of materials.

People get a dental bridge to restore their smile, restore the ability to chew food properly, replace missing teeth, and help prevent remaining teeth from misaligning out of position. Some of the more common dental bridges are the traditional bridge, the cantilever bridge and Maryland bond bridges. A traditional dental bridge creates a crown for the teeth on either side of the missing tooth. These teeth are referred to as abutment teeth. The pontic rests in between the two abutment teeth. This is by far the most common type of dental bridge. The cantilever dental bridge is used when there are only adjacent teeth on one a side of the missing tooth. A Maryland bond dental bridge is made of resin bond which holds plastic teeth and gums. Metal wings are used on either side of this type of dental bridge to bond to the existing teeth.

The process for getting a dental bridge begins when your dentist prepares the abutment teeth. This is done in one visit, where the dentist removes part of the abutment teeth's enamel so they can fit a crown over these teeth. After the dentist has removed the enamel and reshaped the teeth, he will then take an impression of your existing teeth. This impression is used by a dental laboratory to construct the dental bridge, pontic and crowns. At the end of this first visit, your dentist will construct a temporary dental bridge which protects exposed teeth and gums until your permanent dental bridge is constructed by the dental laboratory.

Once your permanent bridge has been constructed, you return to your dentist to be fitted for your permanent bridge. The dentist will often cement the dental bridge temporarily in place to make sure there is a proper fit. You can expect to have multiple visits to check on the fit of your dental bridge and make sure that it is in place properly and that it is not having any adverse effects on your bite or other teeth. Once the dentist is sure that there is a proper fit, the dental bridge will be permanently cemented into place, restoring your smile and giving you better functioning teeth and gums.