3 Common Reasons Dental Bridges Fail Faster Than They Should
When you have a gap in your smile due to one or more missing teeth, a dental bridge is one of the most logical solutions. A dental bridge attaches to one or more of your permanent teeth and has a prosthetic tooth in place to fill in the gaps, which works out well if you don't want to spring for implants. While dental bridges can last for a long time, they can also break, dislodge from their affixed position, or get damaged in other ways. Take a quick look at some of the reasons dental bridges fail so you can afford problems if you opt for this treatment.
You have a bad habit of biting or chewing on things.
Do you constantly find yourself chewing on the end of your ink pen, biting on your fingernails, or anxiously chewing on a foreign object? If so, these are behaviors best to avoid if you have a dental bridge. Chewing on hard items puts repeated stress on the dental bridge, which can push the bridge out of place with time or even cause the prosthetic tooth of the bridge to fall apart. Try chewing on denture-approved sugarless gum instead to break your bad habit.
You have problems with the teeth the bridge is anchored to.
The bridge is set in place by attaching it to surrounding teeth. Therefore, if those good teeth go bad or there is a significant amount of bone loss of these teeth, it will make it more stressful on the dental bridge when you bite or chew. This is a common problem for people that are getting older, but it can also be due to poor oral hygiene as well. Therefore, taking good care of your teeth and getting the recommended cleanings and checkups with your dentist is a good way to also see your dental bridge last as long as possible.
You have a bridge that was improperly installed in the beginning.
It is rare for it to happen, but in some situations, the bridge will fail because it was not adequately installed in the first place. Sometimes this failure is due to changes and advancements in dental technology, so perhaps the dentist did the best they could at the time. If you have a dental bridge that is consistently giving you problems, no matter how long it has been in place, it is best to get n appointment to have the brdge checked out.
For more information, contact specialists like Scott W. Murphy, D.M.D., P.A.
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