If you are missing one or more teeth, you have a number of options when selecting the replacement treatment best for you. When considering dentures versus bridges, you should evaluate which will provide you with optimal oral health and dental hygiene based on your needs and lifestyle.

Every tooth in your mouth is vital to maintaining proper alignment, and spaces left behind by one or more missing teeth can have an effect on your bite, speech, smile, and face shape. Missing teeth can cause your remaining teeth to shift and cause problems with your bite. To preserve your oral health and dental hygiene, you should weigh your options when it comes to tooth replacement treatments and choose the procedure that meets your needs.

Fixed partial dentures (FPDs) are "dental prostheses that are luted, screwed, or mechanically attached or otherwise securely retained to natural teeth, tooth roots, and/or dental implant abutments."1 During the past decades, many types of FPDs or "bridges" have been used to replace missing teeth. With the introduction and widespread use of osseointegrated implants, many missing teeth are now being replaced in this manner rather than with FPDs. Dental bridges can, of course, still be used successfully, and this article will briefly review the many methods of bridge construction and relate them to their applicability and current acceptance of the practicing dentist and the treated patient. These will include: cast-gold, stress-broken bridges; resin-bonded, etched retainers; porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM) bridges; and all-ceramic bridges, including zirconia.

Because bridges are created to be a permanent fixture, they can only be removed by a dentist. In making the choice for a bridge, you should also choose to make the health of your supporting teeth a priority in order to keep the bridge strong and clean.