A bridge is composed of two or more crowns for teeth on either side of a gap created by missing teeth. The teeth on both ends are called anchoring or abutment teeth while the false teeth in the middle are called pontics. First, the abutment teeth are made ready by recontouring or removing a portion of enamel to make room for a crown.

Then impressions of the teeth are made for the dental lab while a temporary bridge is installed. When it is removed a new porcelain or metal bridge will be adjusted to get a proper fit.. If the dental bridge is a fixed bridge, your dentist may temporarily cement it in place for a couple of weeks to make sure it is fitting properly. After a couple weeks, the bridge is cemented into place.