A missing tooth, a gap your tongue keeps finding, or an old bridge with a grey line at the gum. We make and fit dental bridges in Islamabad at our clinic in F-10 Markaz, usually in two visits, and before we touch a tooth we tell you plainly whether a bridge or an implant is the better answer for your gap.
Implants and bridges explained by Dr Kiran Haseeb, BDS.
A dental bridge is a fixed false tooth held in place by the teeth on either side of the gap. We crown those neighbouring teeth and join the false tooth, called a pontic, to the crowns, so the whole unit is cemented in one piece that you cannot take out.
You brush a bridge like your own teeth and clean under it with a threader. The American Dental Association puts it simply: a bridge literally bridges the gap where a tooth used to be (ADA MouthHealthy).
A bridge is one of three ways we replace a missing tooth. The others are a dental implant in Islamabad, which needs no work on the teeth beside it but takes three to six months, and a removable partial denture, which costs least but comes out at night. A bridge sits in between: fixed, fast, and finished in about two visits, at the price of reshaping the anchor teeth.
At our clinic in F-10 Markaz, Dr Kiran plans every one of our dental bridges in Islamabad from an x-ray of the anchor teeth, because a bridge is only as strong as the teeth carrying it. If one of them is weak, decayed or loose, we fix that first or change the plan before any tooth is prepared.
Two, about a week to ten days apart
Local, for the preparation visit
The two teeth either side of the gap
Five to fifteen years on average, longer with care
The same day, gentle chewing for 24 hours
Part 1
The natural teeth either side of the gap. We shape and crown them so the bridge can grip them, and their health on the x-ray decides whether a bridge is possible at all.
Part 2
The false tooth that fills the gap. We shape it to sit on the gum rather than press into it, so the underside can be cleaned with a threader. A pontic that digs into the gum is a food trap.
Part 3
The joins between the pontic and the crowns. In zirconia they are milled as one piece with the rest of the bridge, which is why a well made zirconia bridge rarely breaks at the join.
Which type suits you depends on how healthy the neighbouring teeth are, where the gap is and how many teeth are missing. We also use a cantilever bridge, carried by a tooth on one side only, where the bite is light.
Most common
Crowns on the teeth either side carry one or two false teeth between them. We recommend it for a gap with strong neighbours, especially when those neighbours already have large fillings that would benefit from a crown anyway.
Front teeth
Also called a Maryland bridge. A false tooth with a thin wing that we bond to the back of one neighbouring tooth, so almost nothing is cut. Cleveland Clinic notes this type is typically used to replace front teeth.
Several teeth
Two implants carry a bridge across three or more missing teeth, so we shape no natural tooth at all. We suggest it when the neighbours are missing too, or too weak to carry the load.
These are the three ways we replace a missing tooth. This is the comparison we go through with patients at the consultation, before anything is decided.
| Dental bridge | Dental implant | Partial denture | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teeth either side | Shaped and crowned | Left untouched | Clasps rest on them |
| Surgery | None | Minor surgery to place the implant | None |
| Visits and time | Two visits over one to two weeks | Several visits over three to six months | Two to four visits over a few weeks |
| Fixed or removable | Fixed | Fixed | Removable, out at night |
| Cleaning | Threader or small brush under the false tooth | Like a natural tooth | Taken out and cleaned |
| Cost at the start | Middle | Highest | Lowest |
| Best when | Neighbours already need crowns, or time is short | Neighbours are healthy and there is enough bone | Several teeth are missing or budget is the priority |
A bridge also stops the teeth beside the gap from tilting into it, which an empty gap allows over the years. If you are torn between a bridge and an implant, ask us to show you both on your x-ray.
A dental bridge in Islamabad is priced per unit, so a three unit bridge (two crowns and one false tooth) costs roughly three crowns, and the material sets the price of each unit. We give you the total in writing after we have x-rayed the abutment teeth, because a weak abutment changes both the plan and the price.
Every crown and every false tooth is a unit. Replacing one tooth is usually three units; two missing teeth side by side is usually four.
Zirconia and E-max cost more than metal ceramic. For a bridge the material matters more than for a single crown, because the connectors carry the bite across the gap.
A neighbour with deep decay may need a root canal on that tooth before it can carry a bridge, and a loose one may rule a bridge out. We quote that as its own line rather than discovering it at the fitting.
An implant replaces one tooth without touching its neighbours and costs more at the start. Over twenty years the gap between the two narrows, because bridges are usually replaced at least once in that time.
A conventional bridge does cost the anchor teeth some healthy enamel, and that cannot be undone. If those teeth already carry large fillings, crowning them protects them and the trade is a good one. If they are untouched and healthy, we will tell you that an implant or a resin bonded bridge keeps them intact, before anything is decided.
The risks after fitting are decay at the edge of an anchor crown and gum inflammation under the false tooth, both caused by plaque the toothbrush cannot reach. Cleveland Clinic notes that an anchor tooth weakened by decay or trauma weakens the whole bridge (Cleveland Clinic on dental bridges). Daily cleaning under the pontic is what prevents it, which is why we show you how at the fitting.
A small number of anchor teeth need root canal treatment later, usually because the nerve was already inflamed under an old filling. We judge that risk on the x-ray before preparation, and we treat a doubtful tooth or leave it out of the plan rather than crown it and hope.
A bridge is usually the better choice when the teeth beside the gap already need crowns, when surgery is not suitable, or when treatment has to be finished within a short visit. An implant is usually better when the neighbours are healthy and untouched, and we will say so.
If the teeth either side of your gap have never been filled, we will ask you to consider an implant first. Cutting two healthy teeth to replace one is a decision you should make knowing the alternative, not one we make for you.
A conventional bridge takes two appointments about a week to ten days apart, and we fit a temporary bridge in between so you are never left with a gap. A resin bonded bridge needs even less preparation.
Stage 1
We examine the gap, the gum and both anchor teeth and take an x-ray of the roots and bone. This is where we decide between a bridge, an implant or a bonded bridge, and explain why.
Stage 2
Under local anaesthetic, we shape the teeth either side by a measured amount so the crowns fit over them. We replace any old filling and rebuild the core where it is needed.
Stage 3
We take an impression of the prepared teeth and the gap and choose the shade in daylight. You leave the same day with a temporary bridge, so there is a tooth in the gap.
Stage 4
Your bridge is milled or built in the material we named in writing, over about a week. We ask for the underside of the false tooth to be shaped so a floss threader passes beneath it.
Stage 5
We try the bridge in, check the shade and the fit at the gum, and adjust the bite until it meets evenly. Only then do we cement it, and we show you how to clean under it.
Getting a bridge is not painful, because we numb the anchor teeth with local anaesthetic before we shape them. Most of our patients describe the preparation visit as long rather than sore, and the fitting visit as easy.
Most dental bridges in Islamabad that we replace did not fail because they broke. They failed because plaque built up under the false tooth and at the edges of the anchor crowns. These are the habits we ask every bridge patient to keep.
Five to fifteen years on average, and longer with good care, according to Cleveland Clinic. What usually ends a bridge is not the bridge breaking but decay creeping in at the edge of an anchor crown, which is why the cleaning matters more than the material.
A toothbrush alone leaves plaque on the underside of the false tooth, and that plaque inflames the gum and reaches the crown margins. A six monthly scale and polish with us and an x-ray every couple of years catch trouble at an anchor tooth before it becomes a lost bridge.
Many of our patients come in with metal ceramic bridges made ten or fifteen years ago, with a grey line showing at the gum. That line is the metal showing as the gum has receded. If the anchor teeth are still sound, we replace the old bridge with zirconia, which has no metal edge to show.
Most bridge problems give a warning long before the bridge is lost. These are the six we see most often, including on bridges made elsewhere, and how we deal with each.
Problem
Usually a pontic shaped to press into the gum, or a gap that has opened as the gum shrank. We check the fit, and where the shape is the cause we reshape or remake it so a threader passes underneath.
Problem
Almost always plaque trapped under the false tooth or decay at a crown edge. We clean it, x-ray the anchor teeth, and repair or replace the bridge before the decay reaches the nerve.
Problem
Common for a few weeks after fitting and usually settles. If it lingers, or turns into an ache that wakes you, we check the bite and the nerve on an x-ray.
Problem
The cement has failed or an anchor tooth has decayed underneath. We take it off, treat the tooth and recement or remake it. Left alone, a loose bridge hides fast spreading decay.
Problem
Older metal ceramic bridges can chip at the biting edge. A small chip can often be polished or repaired with composite; a large one is a reason to replace it with zirconia.
Problem
The metal inside an older bridge showing as the gum recedes. It is not dangerous, but if it bothers you we can replace the bridge with metal free zirconia once we have checked the anchors.
A bridge has to carry the bite across a gap, so its connectors take more force than a single crown. That is why we name the material in writing before we prepare your teeth.
Our standard for back teeth and for most bridges. Milled as one piece, very strong at the connectors and with no metal to show at the gum. We use layered zirconia where the bridge shows when you smile.
Lithium disilicate glass ceramic for short front bridges, where translucency matters most. It looks closest to natural enamel, so we reserve it for short spans with a light bite.
We still offer metal ceramic bridges where they suit the case, and we explain the trade off, a possible grey line at the gum in later years, so you can choose. Whichever clinic you choose, ask which material your bridge will be made from before your teeth are prepared.
A conventional bridge is one of the few fixed replacements that fits inside a short trip home, because there is no healing time to wait for. Many of our overseas patients plan it around a two to three week visit.
A bridge is anchored by crowns on the teeth either side, so the two share a material choice. Where the neighbours are healthy, compare a bridge with replacing the tooth with an implant before deciding. An anchor tooth with a deep old filling may need a new filling first, and a tooth that cannot be saved is removed with a gentle extraction before we plan the gap. We settle inflamed gums after a periodontal assessment, and a single chipped front tooth that only needs reshaping is often better served by a composite repair. If a tooth under an old bridge is aching today, start with same day emergency care.
Reviews our patients have left on Google.
An implant is usually better when the teeth either side are healthy and unfilled, because it replaces the tooth without cutting its neighbours. A bridge is usually better when those neighbours already need crowns, when surgery is not suitable, or when treatment has to finish within a short visit. We offer both, so our advice is not tilted toward one.
A conventional bridge takes two appointments about a week to ten days apart, with a temporary bridge in between. A resin bonded bridge can be faster. An implant supported bridge takes three to six months because the implants have to heal into the bone first.
Yes, within one trip. A conventional bridge needs about a week to ten days between preparation and fitting, so a visit of two to three weeks is enough. Send us an x-ray or photos on WhatsApp before you fly so the plan is ready when you arrive.
No. A calculus bridge is a band of hardened tartar that has built up across several teeth, usually behind the lower front teeth. It is a sign of gum disease, not a dental appliance, and we remove it with scaling. If that is what you have, book a scale and polish rather than a bridge consultation.
For a conventional bridge, we remove a millimetre or two from each anchor tooth so the crowns fit over them, which is the same as for a single crown. A resin bonded bridge needs almost none, because its wing is bonded to the back of one tooth.
Not with a zirconia or E-max bridge matched to your shade. The giveaway on older bridges is a grey line at the gum, which comes from the metal inside metal ceramic bridges. A bridge with no metal does not have one.
With a floss threader or a small interdental brush passed under the false tooth once a day. Brushing alone does not reach the underside. A water flosser helps but does not replace the threader. We show you how at the fitting appointment.
Yes, once the numbness wears off after fitting. Avoid cracking hard nuts, bones or supari directly on it, as you would with your own teeth, and tell us if you grind at night, because a night guard protects the bridge.
Yes. For a single front tooth we often suggest a resin bonded bridge, which keeps the neighbouring teeth almost untouched, or a conventional bridge in E-max or layered zirconia where the neighbours already need crowns.
Caught early, we can sometimes repair the decay at the crown edge. Caught late, the bridge has to come off, the tooth is treated and a new bridge is made. Six monthly check ups and an occasional x-ray exist to catch it early.
Keep it, avoid chewing on that side, and call us. A bridge that has come loose can often be cleaned and recemented if the anchor teeth are healthy. Do not glue it back yourself, because trapped decay under a loose bridge spreads quickly.
Yes, if the anchor teeth are still healthy. We cut off the old bridge, check and reshape the teeth if needed, and make a new one, often in zirconia so the grey line of the old metal bridge does not return.
For one or two missing teeth, most of our patients prefer a bridge because it is fixed, feels like their own teeth and does not come out at night. A partial denture is cheaper and touches the other teeth less, so it still has a place when many teeth are missing or the budget is tight.
Yes. Filling the gap stops the teeth beside it from tilting into the space and the opposite tooth from over erupting. That drift is slow, which is why a gap left for years can make a bridge or an implant harder to fit later.
Our consultation fee is PKR 2,000, and it is waived when you go ahead with treatment. We quote the bridge itself in writing after the x-ray, with the material and the number of units named.
Our clinic is inside F-10 Markaz, a short walk from the main commercial strip, and most patients reach us from Blue Area in under fifteen minutes outside peak hours.
Main Sumbal Rd, F-10/3 F 10/3 F-10, Islamabad, 46000, Pakistan
Planning a dental bridge in Islamabad starts with a consultation. We x-ray the teeth either side, tell you which option protects them best, and give you a written price before anything is cut.
Anchor teeth x-rayed before any price.
Dr. Kiran Haseeb Clinic in Islamabad features a modern facility equipped with the latest dental technology, ensuring all treatments meet international standards.
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