Who Is a Good Candidate for Dental Bridges?

A dental bridge is a restorative treatment that fills the gap left by a missing tooth. These restorations feel similar to natural teeth and prevent additional oral health issues from arising due to gaps in the smile. Qualifying for dental bridges is also easy. Most patients find they qualify, and if they do not, they can undergo a few procedures to strengthen their teeth and become candidates.

Determining candidacy for dental bridges

Number and location of missing teeth

The first step in determining whether a patient is a candidate for a dental bridge is to consider how many teeth they are missing and where. Bridges can replace up to three consecutive teeth. Bridges may not be the most appropriate option if a patient is missing more than three or the missing teeth are scattered throughout the mouth. This is due to dental bridges replacing either a single tooth surrounded by healthy teeth, which act as anchors, or three missing teeth in a row.

Assessing oral health and hygiene

The next step is considering the patient’s oral health and hygiene practices. To qualify for dental bridges, patients must have good oral health and be consistent with oral hygiene. If these factors are lacking, the bridge will be at risk of failing. Further, the placement of the bridge does not prevent oral health conditions from affecting it. For example, gum disease can develop underneath the bridge, so patients will need to clean this space daily. Similarly, tooth decay can affect the teeth that anchor the bridge in place, causing it to fail.

Determining candidacy for dental bridges

As mentioned, dental bridges fill the gap left by one to three missing teeth. More specifically, bridges comprise a false tooth called a pontic, and the anchors are mounted on the teeth next to the gap (abutment teeth). The anchors are typically dental crowns (toothlike caps) cemented on top of the natural teeth or artificial tooth roots known as dental implants. The exception is Maryland dental bridges, which secure the bridge with metal wings. However, traditional bridges use two crowns on two abutment teeth; a cantilever bridge uses one crown on one abutment tooth.

Note that bridges anchored by dental implants, or implant-supported bridges, are the only type of bridge that can replace as many as three missing teeth in a row. The surrounding teeth will not need to act as abutments. Rather, two dental implants will be placed at either end of the gap and serve as abutments for the third artificial tooth (the pontic) in the middle.