Caring For Your New Bridge
Your new bridge fills the gap from a missing tooth by anchoring to the teeth on either side, restoring your bite and your smile. The key to making it last is keeping it clean underneath, where a regular toothbrush cannot reach. Here is how.
The First Few Days
- Wait on the numbness. Avoid chewing until it resolves so you do not bite your cheek, lip, or tongue.
- Mild sensitivity and tender gums around the anchor teeth are normal for a few days.
- Your bite may feel different at first. Give it a few days to feel natural.
Eating & Comfort
- Once your final bridge is cemented, you can eat normally. It is built for full chewing.
- For lingering sensitivity, a sensitivity toothpaste such as Sensodyne helps.
Cleaning Underneath
Food and plaque collect under the false tooth. Clean there daily with a floss threader or Super Floss to pull floss beneath the bridge. A water pick is excellent too, but it is not a substitute for flossing. Using both together is best.
Call Us If
- Your bite feels high or uneven once numbness wears off. This is a quick adjustment.
- Your bridge comes loose or lifts.
- Sensitivity or pain is getting worse after a week instead of better.
- You notice swelling, a bad taste, or odor around the bridge.
How To Make Your Bridge Last As Long As Possible
A bridge cannot decay, but the anchor teeth holding it and the gum underneath it can. The space beneath the bridge is where food and bacteria collect, so that is exactly where your care goes.
- Clean underneath the bridge daily with a floss threader or Super Floss to clear what collects under the false tooth. A water pick is excellent too, but it does not replace flossing, so use both together. This is the single most important habit.
- Brush the gum line around all the supporting teeth, cheek side and tongue side, where bacteria try to sneak under.
- Keep your regular cleanings, so we can clean under and around the bridge far more thoroughly than you can at home.
Keep underneath it clean and your bridge can serve you for many years!
Questions about your bridge or your recovery? Call the office anytime. We are here for you!
