Q.
Six years ago I lost a good front tooth when a dentist accidentally split it when drilling through a veneer to replace it. I then had to have a bridge to close the gap, using my other front tooth as one of the anchors. At the time
This tooth had a small side filling and a sound root canal which had been done some 15 years earlier. The bridge cost me a lot of money to get a natural look and get the speech right. Now I am currently experiencing discomfort from this anchor tooth when biting or pushing on the top side of the bridged tooth near the gum line. There has been a
Some inflammation of the gum around this tooth for some time which I have been trying to control recently with a water pic. The dentist xrayed the tooth and there is nothing showing, there is no sign of abscess and the root canal seems sound. However the tooth itself cannot be seen for decay due to the metal plate on the back of the bridge. The dentist has given me metronidazole to see if it may be gum bacteria, but the prognosis beyond this is disturbing as he told me of other options available. He thinks I could have another root canal through the back of the bridge or remove the bridge to see the state of the tooth – either way there is a big risk of loosing this anchor tooth due to the trauma. If this were to happen how could I cosmetically reinstate the front teeth and would there be a natural looking temporary solution be available in the meantime that not only looks natural but does affect speech. Do you think the antibiotic may work to resolve such a issue?.