Sometimes the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason.
—Jerry Seinfeld
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When a patient appears in your office with a porcelain fracture on a multiple unit fixed bridge, your first thoughts may be, “Oh no! I will have to cut it all off and start over!” This is not always the case. If the porcelain fracture is stress related and the bridge is otherwise still in excellent condition, a simple overlay, saddle crown, can be fabricated to cement over the existing bridge.
- When preparing for a saddle crown, prepare the facial and lingual surfaces only.
- Use a round-ended, tapered, coarse diamond to prepare the remaining porcelain and metal, taking care to not change the adjacent proximal ceramic contours.
- These surfaces are then joined proximally incisal to the connector joints of the existing bridge.
- If all porcelain needs to be removed, take care to not over adjust the underlying metal framework, which could compromise strength.
- Be sure to check for incisal clearance when the patient closes into centric occlusion, as well as protrusive and lateral excursions.
- Take two impressions, opposing model, and bite, and then temporize in your usual way.
- Becden will fabricate a porcelain to gold overlay crown, which can be conventionally cemented over the bridge.
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| This is a demonstration of the preparation design to use on the bridge in the mouth. |
Becden has an article written by Dr. Robert A. Lowe in DPR, December 2006. For a reprint of this article contact Emily Webb at emilyw@becdendental.com
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131 E. 13065 S.
Draper, UT 84020 |
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888-344-9991 toll-free
801-576-9991 phone |
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The editor of this newsletter is Emily Webb of Becden Dental Laboratory, Inc. Please send any questions or comments about this newsletter, or suggestions for articles to: emilyw@becdendental.com
©2007 BECDEN Dental Laboratory, Inc. |
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Technical Tip – Repairing Fractured Porcelain On A Bridge
