By Dr. Peter Silver

There are any number of reasons someone might be missing a tooth, but the more important question is what to do about it. The two most common solutions for replacing a missing tooth—a bridge or a dental implant—are effective but also invasive, with potential disadvantages. Now there is an easy, safe, noninvasive alternative, the FirstFit Inlay Bridge.

 

With a traditional bridge, teeth on both sides of the missing tooth are ground down in order to create a three (or more) tooth replacement with a false tooth in the center, creating a “bridge” over the missing tooth space. The advantage of this technique is that it can be used when there is not enough bone left to place a dental implant. The big disadvantage is how much of the healthy tooth structure is removed. Also, once a bridge is placed, the patient is committed to having it replaced eventually.

With a traditional dental implant, a titanium root replacement is placed into the bone, where it is left to integrate for three months. Then a post is placed into the implant, and finally a crown is set in place to cover it all. (In my practice we do this in a much less invasive way, using mini-implants that don’t require a three-month waiting period. See NYCenterForMinimallyInvasiveDentistry.com for more about this technique.) The advantage to a dental implant is that you leave the teeth on either side of it alone, and you also can place an implant where there is no tooth behind it.

The innovation that my practice offers is the new FirstFit Inlay Bridge. When a patient has a tooth missing between two other teeth, due to new, harder and stronger dental materials, we are able to make a small slot in the adjacent teeth and, in the same visit, place a false tooth that fits perfectly in between those teeth. This procedure requires less drilling than placing a filling, and of course we make the entire procedure painless by gently but profoundly numbing the area first.

 

Those interested in seeing if they are candidates for this procedure should call the New York Center for Minimally Invasive Dentistry at 212-924-6890. The center is offering Natural Awakenings readers a free consultation. To see if you are a candidate for this procedure, please call Dr Silver's office at 212-924-6890 or email us at [email protected]. More  at NYCenterForMinimallyInvasiveDentistry.com.