An alternative treatment in the case of a patient who has lost a tooth is a dental bridge. A dental bridge permanently replaces a missing tooth or teeth.

A dental bridge essentially fills a gap in the dentition. It involves replacing a missing tooth with a prosthetic tooth attached to the natural teeth on either side of the gap. There are two main types of dental bridges. The most common consists of two crowns, permanently attached to the natural teeth on either side of the interval, with the prosthetic tooth (or teeth) connecting them all together —hence the name dental bridge.