Dental implants vs bridge? People with experience please answer.?

I have an old crown ( 30 years old) on a front tooth. Several weeks ago the tooth broke off near the gum line because the tooth the crown was on was so weak to begin with. It is now on temporarily - but I have to make a decision sometime in the next week or so whether or not to do an implant/crown or a fixed bridge. I would like opinions from people who have had both. Pros and cons. The only information I can find is on websites promoting implants - so of course they tout the benefits of the product they are trying to sell. I need real life info please!

Dental implants vs bridge? People with experience please answer.?
if you go for a bridge the bone can breakdown......think of old grannies the way their lips cave in...eventually nothing will stay on that area because there will be nothing in which it can hold......





if you go for a crown/implant it somehow keeps the healthier and no decay so your mouth won't cave in
Reply:I would definately go for the implant, its better for you in the long run. When the implant is put in its put on a metal post into your bone, this is good because your face wont sink in... now that sounds drastic but think of how people look when they get old and dont have teeth. It caves in.... the bridge is not affixed to the bone so that could still happen. Although implants aren't covered by insurance I would definately go that route. Now... I wont say that they are 100% fool proof because I have seen them go bad, this was patient error of coarse but it can happen. Are you a smoker? Drink a ton of pop or any sweet drinks... these can cause problems for implants so if you go that route and pay all that money just take care to make sure you aren't doing anything to cause it to fail.
Reply:In order for you to have a bridge, you might have to shave down the other teeth in order to get the "bridge" done right. This is the worst aspect of the bridge. It weakens your other teeth while trying to keep your tooth in question.


You do not want to make the rest of your teeth, adjacent to the one you are trying to fix worse off.





In this sense the Implant is better. The implant only deals with the tooth in question and does not require work on adjacent teeth.





There are cons with implants too, which are detailed in the link I will provide below.





If you have a good dentist, the implant is the way to go. If your insurance does not cover it, then you might reconsider.. but think long term. If you weaken your other teeth, then the costs will be very high in the future for short fix today. If your dentist is not adept at implants, find one that is, so that it will work out well.
Reply:You have to first be a candidate for an implant before deciding which way to go.. if you're not a candidate, then your options would then be either a permanent bridge or a removable partial denture.





~just something to think about.





:)