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Restorative Dentistry
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Inlays & Onlays · Crowns · Bridges · Dentures · Dental
Implants ·
We believe that the best teeth are your own teeth. We will do all that
we can to make sure you keep your teeth. But sometimes, a tooth is
badly damaged or lost. Fortunately, there are several ways to restore a
badly-damaged tooth and replace a lost tooth.
To repair damage involving over half of the tooth’s biting surface,
rather than using a simple filling, or a crown, your dentist will often
use an inlay, or an onlay.
Inlays and onlays, can be porcelain, gold, or composite resin cast
sections that are bonded to the damaged area of a tooth. An inlay
is similar to a filling and lies inside the cusp tips of the tooth; an
onlay is a more extensive reconstruction that covers one or more cusps
of a tooth.
Inlays and onlays are both traditionally made of gold; however,
porcelain is now becoming the material of choice because of its
strength and potential to match the natural color of your tooth.
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Crowns
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A crown (also called a cap) can be used to cover the damaged
part of the tooth. A crown protects the tooth from further damage. You
would typically need a crown:
· after a
root canal;
· to cover
a large filling in a tooth;
· to
restore a broken tooth; or
· if your
tooth is badly stained, is not the right shape or is out of line.
Crowns can be made of different kinds of metals, porcelain or porcelain
fused to metal.
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Bridges
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A Bridge
fills the space where one or more teeth are missing. It is
important to replace a lost tooth with a false (or artificial) tooth as
soon as possible. This procedure prevents your remaining teeth from
drifting out of line and causing other problems.
The missing teeth
are replaced with custom-designed replacement teeth, which are secured
by Crowns to existing healthy tooth structure. A bridge
is permanent and cannot be taken out like dentures.
Partial and full dentures are made in a dental lab, based on
a mold (or an impression) of your mouth.
A partial denture is made up of one or more false teeth, and held in
place by clasps that fit onto nearby teeth. You can take a partial
denture out yourself, for cleaning and at night. A partial denture may
be used when surrounding teeth are not strong enough to hold a bridge,
or when more than just a few teeth are missing.
A full denture, also referred to as "complete denture" or "false
teeth," can be used when all your natural teeth are missing.
Dental implants are used to replace missing roots and support
replacement teeth. Dental implants can either be fixed or removable.
Note that dental implants are not for everyone. You must be in
good general health, have healthy gums and enough bone in your jaw to
support the implant(s). This procedure also requires regular dental
visits until the work is done. Implants would normally cost more than
other kinds of replacement teeth.
It is normal for bone to shrink if it no longer has teeth to support.
The bone is less likely to shrink when you have implants sticking to
your teeth. If you have been missing teeth for some time, you may have
already lost bone. A bone graft can help build up the bone so it can
support an implant. When a bone graft is done, bone is added back to
the area where your jawbone has shrunk. Because implants stick to the
bone, false teeth that are attached to implants look and act much like
natural teeth.
If
you need further clarification on any of these dental services or
procedures,
click here to contact
us.
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