Dental Crowns & Bridges

All of your teeth play an important role in speaking, chewing, and maintaining the proper alignment of other teeth. Tooth loss doesn’t necessarily have to occur as you age, but if you do lose teeth, they must be replaced to maintain the proper function of your mouth. Fortunately, there are options for repairing severely damaged teeth and correcting tooth loss. Dental crowns and bridges are two of the most common ways to repair or replace damaged or missing teeth.

Key Benefits of Dental Crowns & Bridges

  • Restore or repair severely damaged or vulnerable teeth
  • Replace missing teeth
  • Offer support to misshapen teeth or badly broken teeth
  • Look completely natural
  • Fix “smile” and functional chewing problems
  • Prevent shifting of remaining natural teeth
  • Help support facial contours

What are the Capabilities of Dental Crowns and Bridges?

Many dental problems can be corrected using these techniques. The materials used for these repairs are either high-grade porcelain or porcelain bonded to gold. A higher strength of porcelain and gold materials is recommended for treating the most serious dental problems. Where accidental damage has resulted in lost teeth, or where teeth have broken away through excessive wear or due to old fillings breaking, dental crowns or bridges can be used as a long-term solution.

Many people have unexplained pain from filled back teeth, which is usually due to hairline cracks in the chewing part of the tooth. Placing crowns on these teeth relieves the pain and restores full dental function. In front teeth, older fillings can both weaken the teeth and cause “appearance” problems due to staining or chipping. Porcelain crowns and bridges are suitable in cases where porcelain veneers are not. In teeth with root canal fillings, crowns can prevent breakage.

Dental Crown Process

Same-Day CEREC Crowns

At our office, we offer same-day CEREC crowns, allowing many patients to have their crown designed, fabricated, and placed in a single visit.

Using advanced digital imaging and CAD/CAM technology, we create a custom ceramic crown that is precisely fitted to your tooth. This means you can often leave the office with your permanent restoration the same day.

Benefits of CEREC Same-Day Crowns

Single-visit convenience: Many crowns can be completed in one appointment.
Digital precision: Advanced scanning technology helps ensure an accurate fit.
Durable ceramic restoration: Strong, natural-looking materials designed for everyday function.
Reduced disruption: Fewer appointments and less time away from work or family.

Traditional Crowns

For a traditional dental crown, Drs. Strickler or Ahmed first numbs the area, then carefully reshapes the tooth to make space for the crown. They take an impression or digital scan of the prepared tooth and send it to our dental lab, where your custom crown is made. While you wait for your permanent crown, we provide a temporary crown to protect your tooth. When your permanent crown is complete, we remove the temporary and cement the final restoration in place, carefully checking the fit and trimming or smoothing any rough edges.

Post-op

After Your CEREC Crown

Avoid chewing until numbness wears off: Wait until the anesthetic has worn off to avoid accidentally biting your cheek or tongue.
Expect mild sensitivity: Some temporary sensitivity to temperature or pressure is normal and usually improves over several days to a few weeks.
Choose softer foods initially: For the first 24 hours, avoid very hard, sticky, or chewy foods while you get used to the new crown.
Maintain excellent oral hygiene: Brush and floss normally around the crown. Good home care helps protect both the crown and the surrounding tooth structure.
Monitor your bite: If the crown feels too high, uncomfortable when biting, or if sensitivity worsens instead of improving, contact our office for an adjustment.

Most patients adapt quickly to their new CEREC crown and appreciate the convenience of completing treatment in a single visit.

Dental Bridge Process

There are two types of dental bridges available, depending on your individual needs and the number of teeth missing. Fixed bridges and removable bridges are both excellent options for replacing two or more missing teeth.

Fixed Bridge

A traditional fixed dental bridge is designed to replace one or more missing teeth by securely anchoring an artificial tooth (or teeth) to the healthy teeth on either side of the gap. In most cases, Dr. Strickler or Dr. Ahmed can complete this treatment entirely within our office, often in just a single day. Only occasionally is it necessary to involve an outside dental laboratory for specialized fabrication.

The process begins with a detailed evaluation and precise digital scans or impressions of your teeth. These records are used to design a custom bridge that blends naturally with your smile in both appearance and function. The replacement tooth or teeth are permanently connected between two custom-crafted crowns that fit over the supporting teeth adjacent to the space.

Once the bridge has been fabricated, the crowns are carefully bonded to the natural teeth on either side of the gap, securely holding the restoration in place. The result is a strong, stable, and natural-looking replacement that restores your ability to chew, speak, and smile with confidence.

Because a fixed bridge is permanently cemented in place, it can only be removed by a dentist. While traditional bridge treatment has historically required two or three appointments, our advanced in-office technology often allows us to complete the entire procedure in a single visit, providing greater convenience and faster results for our patients.

Removable Bridge (Partial Denture)

A removable bridge, sometimes called a partial denture, is designed differently. Instead of being cemented in, it clips onto nearby teeth with small metal or plastic attachments, allowing you to remove it for cleaning and sleeping. It is a more flexible and affordable option, especially for people who may not be ready for a fixed bridge or dental implants. As with a fixed bridge, a removable bridge usually requires more than one appointment.