Restorative Fillings – The Difficult Questions Answered

[Dr Nishant Vaishnav]

Restorative dental care is a broad field but fillings happen to be one of the most common procedures within the niche. Almost every Perry Lakes dental clinic professional, Floreat dentist or Claremont dental clinic has had to deal with those at least once.

Maintaining the integrity of the tooth’s structure is crucial for both functional and aesthetical reasons. Many patients have questions about restorative fillings. Answering those is imperative before the procedure. In this article, the Ashton Avenue Dental Practice professionals will try to provide information about the most common and difficult restorative filling inquiries.

What are Restorative Fillings?

Restorative fillings or dental restoration refer to using specialised materials to restore the function and the morphology of missing tooth structures. It’s a common solution in the case of a cavity. A dentist will remove the damaged and decayed portion of the tooth. The hollow place that forms will be filled with the dental restoration material.

Restorative filling can also be used for the repair of cracked and chipped teeth. Apart from making the patient more capable of consuming all kinds of foods, the procedure restores the integrity of the tooth and has aesthetic benefits, as well.

What Types of Materials are used?

The restorative filling material will be chosen on the basis of experience and suggestion of your Perry Lakes dental clinic practitioner or any other professional in the surrounding suburbs of Floreat or Claremont.

In the past amalgam fillings used to be very popular. These consist of mercury and a silver alloy – materials that are tough and that give the filling a life ranging between 15 and 20 years. There’s no evidence that the mercury in amalgam fillings is dangerous, regardless of the fact that dozens of clinical studies have been carried out.

Composite fillings are white in colour and they tend to be a bit more brittle than amalgam. Silica, ceramic particles and powdered glass quartz are usually included in the composition of composite fillings. A dentist can modify the shade and tone of the composite filling to make it a complete match with your teeth colour.

Several other options exist, as well. Glass ionomer fillings are rather weak but they can release fluoride to prevent further decay. Gold inlays have been around for decades. The dentist will make a tooth impression and the gold inlay or on lay will be made in a lab. This is one of the toughest restorative filling options. The final possibility is a porcelain inlay are long lasting and they can be coloured to be an exact match.

What’s the Difference between a Temporary and a Permanent Filling?

Sometimes, getting a filling will require more than one appointment. In such instances, a dentist will give you a temporary filling that will support the tooth structure until the permanent filling is in place.

A temporary filling may also be required in the case of root canal treatment and in the case of an emergency dental treatment. The temporary filling isn’t supposed to last a very long time and it has to be replaced with a permanent one as soon as possible.

How should I Care for my Teeth after Getting a Filling?

Good oral hygiene is equally important for individuals that don’t have fillings and for the ones that have gotten those. During your Ashton Avenue Dental Practice appointment, you’ll be given professional ideas and suggestions that will help you do the best in terms of oral hygiene after getting a filling.