Choosing Between Crowns and Bridges: A Patient’s Guide

Introduction: Restoring Your Smile

Whether you’re dealing with a damaged tooth or a gap in your smile, restoring your teeth isn’t just about aesthetics—it’s essential for chewing, speaking, and long-term oral health. Damaged or missing teeth can lead to bite problems, shifting teeth, and even jawbone loss over time. That’s why treatments like both dental crowns and bridges are so important.

Dental crowns and bridges are two of the most common restorative procedures we offer at Clean Smiles in Edmonton. While both are highly effective, they serve different purposes. This guide will help you understand each treatment, when they’re used, and which might be right for your smile.

What Is a Dental Crown?

A dental crown is a custom-made, tooth-shaped cover or “cap” that fits over a damaged or decayed tooth to restore its shape, strength, and appearance. It is securely bonded to the existing tooth, offering long-term protection and improved function. Crowns play a key role in maintaining good oral health by preserving the natural tooth structure and preventing further deterioration.

A dental professional will first prepare the tooth and often place temporary crowns while your custom permanent crown is being crafted. Depending on your needs and preferences, materials such as ceramic crowns may be used for their natural appearance and durability.

Common uses for dental crowns:

• After a root canal to seal and strengthen the treated tooth
• To restore a broken or cracked tooth
• For teeth with large fillings that compromise tooth structure
• Cosmetic reasons, such as reshaping or colour correction

Types of crown materials:

• Porcelain or Ceramic Crowns
  Crafted from strong, tooth-coloured materials, porcelain or ceramic crowns blend seamlessly with your smile. They’re especially well-suited for front teeth, offering a highly natural appearance.
  
  
• Metal Crowns
  Made from gold alloys or other durable metals, metal crowns are incredibly strong and resistant to wear—making them an excellent choice for molars that handle heavy chewing.
  
  
• Porcelain-Fused-to-Metal (PFM) Crowns
  PFM crowns combine the durability of metal with the aesthetic appeal of porcelain. This makes them a versatile option, especially for visible front teeth, where both strength and a natural look are important.
  
  
• Resin Crowns
  Resin crowns are a cost-effective solution for restoring damaged teeth. Made from tooth-coloured composite material, they offer a decent aesthetic match with surrounding teeth, though they may not last as long as other options.

Dental crowns are custom-designed to match the colour and contour of your natural teeth, blending seamlessly into your smile.

When to Choose a Dental Crown

Advantages of Choosing a Crown:

• Restores a damaged or decayed tooth: Ideal when the tooth is cracked, worn, or has significant decay but still has a healthy root.
• Preserves your natural tooth: A dental crown can strengthen and protect a structurally compromised tooth without the need for extraction.
• Improves aesthetics: Crowns can enhance the appearance of a misshapen or discolored tooth, providing a natural, uniform look.

Potential Disadvantages:

• Requires tooth reshaping: The natural tooth must be filed down to fit the crown, which is an irreversible procedure.
• Not suitable if the tooth is too damaged: If the root is no longer viable, a crown alone won’t be effective—you may need a root canal or extraction first.
• Can be costly: Depending on the material (e.g., porcelain or ceramic), dental crowns can be more expensive than other restorations like fillings.

Crowns are a conservative and highly effective way to preserve your natural tooth while improving function and appearance.

For more info on Dental Crowns – visit our guide here!

What Is a Dental Bridge?

A dental bridge is a fixed dental prosthetic used to replace one or more missing teeth. It literally “bridges” the gap between neighboring teeth, using them as anchors to support the restoration. This type of restoration is ideal when you need to replace missing teeth due to injury, decay, or the extraction of a damaged tooth. By filling the space left by one or more teeth, a dental bridge helps maintain bite alignment and prevents shifting of the neighboring teeth, which can lead to further oral health issues.

Components of a bridge:

• Pontic: the artificial tooth that fills the gap
• Abutment crowns: placed on either side of the pontic to anchor the bridge in place

Types of dental bridges:

• Traditional bridge: supported by crowns on adjacent natural teeth
• Cantilever bridge: supported on only one side (used when only one adjacent tooth is available)
• Maryland bridge: uses a metal or porcelain framework bonded to the backs of adjacent teeth
• Implant-supported bridge: anchored to dental implants instead of natural teeth

Bridges are ideal for patients who want a fixed, non-removable solution and aren’t candidates for dental implants.

When to Choose a Bridge

Advantages of Dental Bridges

• Replaces missing teeth: An effective solution if you’re missing one or more teeth in a row.
• Uses healthy adjacent teeth for support: If neighboring teeth are strong, they can anchor the bridge securely.
• Fixed and long-lasting: A permanent restoration that doesn’t need to be removed like dentures.
• Restores function and appearance: Helps maintain your bite, improve speech, support proper chewing, and prevent teeth from shifting.
  
  

Disadvantages of Dental Bridges

• Requires altering healthy teeth: Adjacent existing teeth must be filed down to support the bridge.
• Not suitable if neighboring teeth are weak: If the anchor teeth aren’t healthy enough, a bridge may not be stable.
• Not an implant alternative for everyone: While it’s a good option if you can’t get implants, it doesn’t preserve jawbone the way implants do.
  

A bridge can restore your bite and smile, prevent remaining teeth from shifting, and support proper chewing and speech.

For more info on Dental Bridges – visit our guide here!

Pros & Cons of Each Option

Feature	Crown	Bridge
Used for	Single damaged tooth	One or more missing teeth
Cost	Typically lower	Higher (more materials and labor involved)
Lifespan	10–15 years with proper care	10–15 years with good oral hygiene
Aesthetic	High	High
Tooth impact	Minimal prep may be needed	Requires shaping adjacent healthy teeth

Both options offer durable and natural-looking results, but the right one for you will depend on your specific dental condition and goals.

Crowns and Bridges – Which One Is Right for You?

Choosing between a dental crown and a dental bridge depends on several factors:

• Number of damaged or missing teeth
• Health of surrounding teeth and gums
• Bone density and implant candidacy
• Your budget and long-term dental goals

A personalized dental exam and consultation is the best way to determine which dental restoration treatment fits your needs. Your dentist will evaluate your teeth, bite, and oral health to recommend the most appropriate proper care and solution.

How Clean Smiles Dentistry Can Help

At Clean Smiles in Edmonton, we specialize in restorative dentistry and take pride in helping patients regain confidence and function in their oral health.

Our process includes:

• A comprehensive consultation and digital diagnostics
• Custom treatment plans based on your needs and goals
• High-quality materials for long-lasting, beautiful results

Whether you need a single dental crown or a multi-unit dental bridge, our team has the experience and technology to deliver results and dental restoration you can count on.

🔗 Learn more about our Dental Crowns and Bridges services here

Book Your Consultation Today

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a dental bridge replace multiple teeth?

Yes, a dental bridge can be designed to replace multiple teeth in a row. This type of dental restoration uses false teeth supported by natural teeth or implants on either side of the gap. A dental lab custom-fabricates the bridge to match your bite and appearance, providing a seamless dental solution for restoring function and your smile.

Are both crowns and bridges suitable for front teeth?

Yes, both crowns and bridges can be used on front teeth. When restoring visible areas of your smile, your dental professional will often recommend materials like porcelain or ceramic for a natural look. Whether you need a single false tooth or full dental restoration, the final product is custom-made in a dental lab to blend in beautifully with your existing teeth.

What’s the difference between dental crowns, bridges, and implants when replacing missing teeth?

Each option serves a different purpose in restoring your smile and protecting your oral health. Dental crowns are used to cover and strengthen a damaged tooth, but they don’t replace missing teeth on their own. If you’re missing one or more teeth, a dental bridge may be used, anchored by adjacent crowns. Dental implants, on the other hand, are a surgical solution that replaces the root of a missing tooth and can support a crown or bridge. Your dentist will recommend the best option based on how many teeth are missing, their location, and your overall oral health.