Originally Posted by Bryanna

Hi Kitt,

So sorry to hear that your teeth were pulled instead of doing braces! There is nothing you can do about that now and that may have been the only option available to your parents at that time. The bridge that you have for about 47 years has certainly exceeded the normal longevity of most dental bridgework. Generally, dental bridges are replaced around 15-20 years old. The cement that holds the anchor crowns on eventually wears out and this allows bacteria to get in underneath the crowns. It would be wise to periodically have your bridge checked for mobility and radiographs taken to check the health of those anchor teeth.

Anytime a tooth is going to have a crown, the tooth is ground down to a small size. Some dentists still grind the tooth to a pointy stub and others are more conservative with the preparation of the tooth. The more tooth structure removed, the more likely to injure the nerve and cause the tooth to die. But in your case, you may be one of the fortunate ones!!

If you had to have that bridge replaced and the anchor teeth were still healthy, then only minimal tooth preparation would be done mostly around the gumline and a new bridge would be fitted. If the anchor teeth were not healthy, then you may be given the option of root canal therapy or extraction. If you opted for the root canals and you ended up with a bad infection in one or both of those anchor teeth, then a whole new bridge would have to be redone again after the tooth/teeth were extracted. So if that incident ever occurs, you may want to weigh out all of your treatment options so you can make the best long term decision for yourself.

Yes, the palate is the roof of the mouth and it's good that yours is not flat should you ever need to wear a denture or partial denture!

Bryanna