You are missing one or more teeth: this is what we call edentulism.
The other teeth silently take the strain and start to loosen, and because chewing is less efficient, your stomach has to work harder. To protect your other teeth, your health and your comfort, the tooth needs to be replaced.
A bridge means resting on abutment teeth on either side, with a “solid” tooth in the middle. The abutment teeth are prepared just like crowns. The word says it all: a bridge spans a gap.
The other options
A removable denture: in the long run, however, the teeth that held the clasps become loose, and the comfort is nowhere near that of natural teeth or implants. It can be a temporary solution.
An implant: this is the best solution and the sensible one, rebuilding the tooth from A to Z exactly as it was. It is the most economical in the long run, though the initial cost is higher.
With modern techniques, all 3 solutions are painless.
