Dental fillings are probably the most common dental procedure carried out, and at some point in our life, we’ll probably need to get at least one of them.
Dental fillings are used to restore missing tooth structure by filling the cavity (hole). Typically, we’ll remove the decayed portion of your tooth and then fill the area with the most suitable filling material.
Cavities are usually the result of tooth decay but other causes include cracked or broken teeth, or teeth that have been damaged by nail-biting, tooth grinding or trauma.
Every time we eat, bacteria also feed and after eating they produce an extremely strong sticky acid layer known as plaque. When we don’t remove this sticky layer through brushing and flossing, the bacterial acid keeps eroding away tiny amounts of the tooth structure each day until a hole forms in your tooth.
Unlike many other bones in the body, once a hole forms in a tooth, the body cannot repair it. Therefore, to save the tooth from extraction the bacteria needs to be professionally removed, and a hard, tooth-like material known as a dental filling placed.
The team at The Woodlands Dental Clinic use many different types of dental fillings techniques to treat dental cavities such as:
Both amalgam and composite fillings have been around for many years, and although amalgam was adapted for dental use much earlier over 100 years ago, composite fillings gained significant popularity in the last 40+ years.
The process of filling cavities is a fairly simple and straightforward one that can be done right at our clinic
When a tooth is damaged too much to place a filling, but not damaged enough to place a dental crown, we end up somewhere in the middle. Large tooth fillings can weaken the tooth structure and cause the tooth to break, while a dental crown is an unnecessary procedure that will take away more of the tooth than needed.
Inlays and onlays are an alternative option to traditional fillings and fill the treatment gap between needing a large filling and a dental crown. Dental inlays and onlays are the same types of restoration, however, cover different parts of the tooth. An inlay sits inside the center of the tooth while an onlay sits on top of the tooth covering one or more cusps or the entire biting surface.
Today, several dental filling materials are available. Teeth can be filled with gold, porcelain, silver amalgam (which consists of mercury mixed with silver, tin, zinc, and copper) or tooth-coloured materials such as composite resin fillings. For further information please ask your clinician or speak to our lead dental nurse.
Book a visit to Woodlands Dental Services, simply fill out the form below and we will contact you back regarding the intervention you require.
We are a friendly team of dentists, hygienists and receptionists who work together to ensure that you receive the best treatment you require.
