Anchor, span, margin, unit: if those words went past you in a dental conversation, you are in good company. Here is what they refer to, so you can follow along and ask sharper questions.
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Dentistry has its own shorthand, and bridges bring a good share of it. Most of these terms describe simple ideas: the part that holds, the part that replaces, the distance between them, and the edge where restoration meets natural tooth.
Learning a few of them makes a treatment discussion much easier to follow, though the words alone will not tell you what your own mouth needs. For Park View residents, care takes place at our clinic on McPhillips Street in Winnipeg, and your dentist can show you what each term refers to in your case.
Explore dental bridges
A tooth or implant that holds the bridge in position. It has to be able to carry chewing forces.
The length of the space being filled. Longer ones create different mechanical demands.
The edge where the restoration meets the tooth. Plaque here can contribute to decay.
Most of what you will hear falls into one of these two groups. Ask for a definition any time a new term comes up, too.
These describe what the restoration is made up of. You may hear them mentioned when a plan is being explained.
These tell you where the support is coming from. Which type is appropriate depends on what your examination finds.
Different offices may use slightly different words for the same thing. If a term on an estimate does not match this page, just ask what it refers to.
Here is how those words tend to appear as the work moves along. Each stage comes with its own bit of language.
Request your visitPotential anchors are examined for root health, gum condition, alignment and any existing restorations. This also reveals what the span and your occlusion, or bite, will demand.
Prepared means that a natural anchor is reshaped to receive its crown, when this is required. Implants that have healed would be assessed for restorative connection.
A scan or impression captures the shape of your mouth, while a bite record shows how teeth meet. A temporary is a short-term bridge that may protect your prepared teeth.
A try-in is a test fit covering contacts, margins, bite, looks and cleaning access. Bonded or cemented describes the final attachment after any adjustment.
If you have an earlier estimate or a note from another dental visit, circle the terms that puzzled you. They make a practical agenda for your conversation.
Estimates sometimes list a bridge unit by unit. Ask how the listed items relate to your treatment, and what your coverage may apply to.
A white counter on a wood floor and a blue dental chair at Winnipeg North Dental.
Dental terms can be harder to absorb while you are lying back in a chair. Feel free to ask us to slow down, and save bigger questions for when you are sitting up.
You never need to pretend you followed. Saying you lost the thread helps your team explain it better.
A picture can make an abstract term obvious, so feel free to ask whether one can be shown.
Worry makes it harder to take in information, and your team would rather know about it.
Words you will keep using
Knowing the language can help when you describe a problem by phone. It lets you say where something feels different, and it helps you follow home-care directions.
This small loop pulls floss beneath a bridge, and it is one of several options, along with super floss, an interdental brush or a water flosser.
You may hear this word for routine return visits. They allow your supports, gums and margins to be checked over time.
This simply means your teeth no longer meet in the way they did. Give us a call, as you would for looseness, chips or rough edges.
No special vocabulary is needed to report food packing, bleeding, swelling or a bad taste that will not go away.
Talk with our team
Winnipeg North Dental
Unit-5 2358 Mcphillips Street, Winnipeg, MB R2V 4J6Get directions (opens in a new tab)Your consultation and any treatment are provided at Winnipeg North Dental, Unit 5, 2358 McPhillips Street, Winnipeg, MB. Follow the directions link to plan the way there.
When you contact us by phone or form, you can say you would like a plan explained. Your request gets a reply from the clinic, and that is when a time is settled.
Questions about coverage?
Talk with our team before your visit or learn about CDCP.
Helpful details about dental bridges in Park View.
Ask our teamIn everyday bridge conversations they usually mean the same thing: a tooth or implant holding the restoration in place. Ask your dentist which one is being referred to if it is unclear.
It usually describes a bridge made of three connected sections, commonly two crowned anchors with one artificial tooth between them. Your plan may be arranged differently, so ask to have it explained.
It means shaping a natural tooth so that it can receive a crown, which is a part of many tooth-supported bridges. Ask what this would involve for the specific teeth in your plan.
Bonded or cemented means secured so that you do not take it out yourself. It does not imply the bridge will never need attention or repair, since all restorations require upkeep.
That is the dental word for how your upper and lower teeth come together. It matters because opposing teeth and side-to-side movement affect the shape and material of a bridge.
More or less. It is the artificial tooth that occupies the space in a bridge, supported by the units around it rather than by a root of its own.
Fill in the form on this page or call (204) 338-3003 and mention what you would like clarified. Consultations are at our McPhillips Street clinic in Winnipeg, and we’ll get back to you about a time.
Crowns, implants and inlays each have their own language. These overview pages explain what they do and how they differ.
Learn how custom dental crowns in Winnipeg protect cracked, worn or root canal-treated teeth while restoring comfortable function, shape and appearance.
Explore serviceLearn how dental implants in Winnipeg can replace one tooth or support bridges and dentures, including candidacy, placement, healing and restoration.
Explore serviceLearn when custom inlays or onlays may repair a damaged back tooth in Winnipeg while preserving more natural structure than a full dental crown.
Explore serviceHave an urgent concern? Call (204) 338-3003 to discuss availability.
Make sense of your plan
Park View residents may ask us for a consultation about bridges at our Winnipeg clinic. Once your request arrives, we’ll contact you to arrange it.
Patient testimonials
Winnipeg North Dental
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