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A crown is like a special sleeve made of metal (NHS) or cosmetic porcelain (Private), that goes over a damaged or weak tooth. Your dentist will match it up to the shape – and, in the case of cosmetic porcelain crowns, colour - of your other teeth so it will look natural. The crown will probably last for many years, depending on the health of the tooth underneath.

We will shape the tooth so that, with the artificial crown, it will be the same size as a normal tooth. Preparation time will depend on how damaged the tooth is and whether it needs to be built up with a filling first. The tooth might have to be root-filled first - this is sometimes called 'removing the nerve'. The crown is sometimes held in place by a peg in the root canal if a lot of the tooth is missing.

Your dentist will use a soft mouldable material to make an exact 'impression' of the tooth that is to be crowned and the nearby teeth. A dental technician uses the impressions to make the crown the exact height and size needed. A thin cord may be used to hold the gum away from the tooth so that the impression is accurate round the edges.

A bridge fixes a replacement tooth (or teeth) to the natural teeth on either side of the gap. Some bridges have crowns at each end. Others are fixed to the surface of the teeth next to the gap.

Bridges can close the gap left by one or more missing teeth, restoring the look of your smile and redistributing the workload more evenly. In some cases we might suggest an artificial tooth implanted right into your jawbone.