Discover the 5 types of fixed prostheses: find out what is best for you!
What is it?
The term fixed prosthesis refers to a wide range of procedures that aim to restore or replace teeth using restorations made in the laboratory and are fixed in the patient’s mouth. They can be placed either on natural teeth or on Implants.
What is it for?
In an increasingly longer-living society our aim is not only to live longer, but also to have quality of life.
These procedures will help us to maintain a functional and aesthetically pleasing dentition for many more years.
The loss of teeth or degradation of existing teeth, in addition to the obvious functional alteration with loss of masticatory efficiency, impairs the person’s self-esteem, can cause emotional imbalances and certainly decreases the quality of life.
Few things can have the impact of a young, beautiful and healthy smile.
Fixed prosthesis types:
Veneers
Ceramic or porcelain veneers are the aesthetic procedure of excellence, a true Smile Lift.
They are similar to ceramic contact lenses that are placed on the front part of the teeth in the aesthetic area ( visible: front and lateral region) and that will allow us to rejuvenate the teeth, change color, align teeth and/or fill in small spaces, etc.
The great advantage, in addition to aesthetics, is the fact that they require minimal dental wear, sometimes even non-existent, and only on the anterior surface of the teeth. As they are very similar to our dental enamel, they allow for an extremely natural result.
Crowns
They can be placed either over natural teeth or over Implants.
In the case of teeth they are used when there is a great destruction of the dental structure. They work as covers that protect the teeth and can be made of various materials (all-ceramic, zirconia, metal-ceramic) and will not only protect the tooth but also reconstruct its original anatomy.
To be placed, they imply a preparation of the tooth at 360°.
In the first case, we replaced two old metal-ceramic crowns with two pure ceramic crowns, in addition to placing 2 veneers on the lateral incisors: case of Smile Lift.
In the second case, we had a very frequent situation, which is the presence of devitalized molars or premolars with major reconstructions, which sooner or later end up breaking,
and in many cases having to be extracted. We protected the two molars on the right with two ceramic crowns that will restore the anatomy and protect the remaining teeth. Tidy up the house.
Ceramic or Composite Overlays and Onlays
Overlays fulfill the same functions as crowns but require less tooth wear. For this reason I personally resort to this technique whenever I can.
Just as crowns are indicated when there is already great destruction of the tooth structure or large restorations (especially if the tooth has had a root canal, which makes it more fragile and with a high probability of fracture). As with crowns, we manage to not only to reconstruct the dental anatomy but also to protect the remaining tooth structure.
In this case, we were able to restore the occlusal anatomy and protect the remaining tooth with two ceramic overlays. Replace premature wear.
Bridges
As the name implies, bridges are structures that unite 2 pillars and restore spaces between them.
These abutments can be natural teeth or implants.
In the case of natural teeth, these have to be prepared (as we do for Crowns) and then a laboratory-made structure of three or more elements is cemented (according to the number of missing teeth).
When we lose a tooth (with the exception of wisdom teeth) this loss must be replaced, even when it is not in the esthetic zone, for several reasons:
- In order not to lose masticatory effectiveness.
- Avoid changes in speech and articulation of words.
- So that neighboring teeth do not start to migrate, trying to occupy the space left, which gives rise to imbalances of all dental occlusion in the region.
- For aesthetic reasons.
In this extreme case, we rehabilitate the lateral sectors with zirconium bridges: Rehabilitation of the upper jaw.
Crowns and Bridges over Implants
In this fixed prosthesis technique, the anchorage is carried out in the patient’s bone through the placement, in a 1st phase, of titanium implants (which work as artificial roots) to which
fixed structures are then screwed, which can be unitary (crowns) or more than one element (bridges).
The big advantage is that you don’t have to wear down neighboring teeth as with fixed prostheses on natural teeth.
Only a specialist that is familiar with these various techniques can advise you.
The treatment Plan should include the fixed prosthesis techniques that are most suitable for you, as these techniques can be used alone or combined in order to have a healthy, beautiful, natural and functional smile.
