Dental CT Asia

IMPLANTS, CROWNS, AND BRIDGES VS. NATURAL TEETH     Nothing can replace the natural teeth you were born with for 'hewing and function. However, very few people go through life without having teeth filled, crowns (caps) placed, or bridge and implants used to replace missing teeth. Crowns, bridges, and implants are the best answer and closest to your natural teeth, but they are not the same as healthy, natural teeth. Crowns     Crowns are used to reconstruct a single tooth broken down by dental decay. Crowns are made of ceramic, resin, porcelain, porcelain plus metal, or resin plus met. 1 materials. They are bonded or cemented onto the prepared tooth and cannot easily be removed from the tooth once placed. Bridges     Bridges are crowns that are attached together, suspending the crown portion of a false tooth in or over the space left by the missing tooth. A bridge can be used to replace one or several teeth. Sometimes a bridge is used to splint loose teeth together in order to make the teeth more stable. Bridges are usually made of metal covered with either porcelain or resin. Some of the newer bridges are made of all resin or all ceramic materials. They are cemented or bonded onto the existing prepared teeth and are not easily removed once placed.    The teeth are generally the same shape as natural teeth. However, if the existing teeth (abutments) that are used to anchor the bridge have moved from their original position because a tooth or teeth have been missing for years, the added tooth (pontic) may be longer or shorter than the tooth that it is replacing. With a bridge, the false tooth will most often butt up against the soft tissue ridge where the removed tooth was. The shape of the tongue side of the false tooth varies. It is usually smaller <