Serving Ocala,FL For 28 years
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Crowns & Bridges

Crown

A crown is a permanent covering that fits over an original tooth that is decayed, damaged or cracked. Crowns are generally made of porcelain, gold and other metals. Porcelains typically have the most natural appearance although they tend to be less durable than the other materials.

For a patient qualifying for a crown, the treatment plan generally involves:

• Numbing the tooth to be crowned to remove the decay in or around it.
• Re-sculpturing the tooth to provide an easy fit for the crown.
• Making an impression of your teeth to send to a dental laboratory where custom-made crowns will be created (usually takes two weeks).
• Making a temporary crown out of composite resin and fitting them onto the teeth during the interim period when the permanent custom-made crowns are being created.
• Applying the permanent crown (when received from the lab) by removing the temporary crown and fitting the permanent one onto the tooth.

The dentist makes sure the crown has the proper look and fit and then cements it into place. A minimum of 2 visits over a two week period is what it takes for the treatment to be completed.

Again, once the procedure is completed, proper dental hygiene care including daily brushing and flossing is required to maintain your teeth, gums and crown healthy and free from the bacteria that can cause gum disease. Given proper care, your crowns can last a long time.

Bridge

A bridge is a dental device that is used to fill a space where a tooth has been removed. A bridge may be necessary where spaces exist in the mouth to prevent:

Multiple shifting of the teeth that can lead to biting (occlusion) problems and/or (TMJ) jaw problems and resultant periodontal disease. Bridges safeguard the integrity of existing teeth and help maintain a healthy vibrant smile.

There are three types of bridges namely:

• Fixed bridge-the most popular among the three, consists of a filler tooth that is attached to two crowns, which fits over the adjacent teeth to hold the bridge in place.
• "Maryland" bridge-commonly used to replace missing front teeth, consists of a filler that is attached to metal bands that are bonded to the adjacent teeth and the metal bands are hidden with a white colored composite resin.
• Cantilever bridge-a type often used when there are teeth on only one side of the span. A typical 3 unit cantilever bridge consists of 2 crowned teeth positioned next to each other on the same side of the missing tooth space. The filler tooth is then connected to the two crowned teeth, which extend into the missing tooth space or end.

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Questions? Comments? Please call us at 352-237-6196 and we'll be more than glad to answer your questions.