Dentist said there isn’t enough room for dental implants

Years ago, I lost a tooth. I didn’t replace it because it wasn’t very visible and I was quite poor then. Now my situation is different. I have money.  I lost an adjacent tooth and want to replace both of them. My dentist said there isn’t enough room and he needs to do a bridge.  The other teeth are fine, so I really don’t want to grind them down.  This doesn’t seem legit to me. There must be a way for me to get the implants. Do you have any thoughts?

Brooke E. – St. Louis

Brooke,

My guess is your dentist likes to stay within his norm and doesn’t want to push himself out of his comfort zone.  It seems like he’s comfortable with bridges, but not dental implants. That is the only reason I can think of for him to suggest grinding down healthy teeth when there are other options.

One option would be to place two implant crowns on a single implant. Another option would be mini implants.

However, your dentist is right about one thing. There is likely a lot less space there than there was  when you lost the first tooth. The reason for that is your teeth shift when there are open spaces. Yours have had plenty of time to shift.

This blog is to you by Naperville Cosmetic Dentist Dr. David Newkirk.