Dental Fillings

If you are experiencing tooth pain, please call us now to make an appointment. We will thoroughly examine your teeth, including X-rays to determine exactly where the pain is coming from.

One of the most common reasons for tooth pain is tooth decay. We can find out quickly and easily which tooth is causing the problem and fix it with dental fillings.

In most cases dental fillings can be done in under an hour and a local anaesthetic is applied to numb the area. We may apply some anaesthetic gel around your gums where required.

The decayed and weakened parts of your tooth are taken out using small drills and the cavity is cleaned. If the cavity has spread to the side of your tooth, a band will be placed around your tooth. The band helps the filling to harden into the correct shape of your tooth.

There are different types of dental fillings, such as composite fillings (white fillings) and amalgam fillings.

Composite resin fillings (most commonly used) is a plastic tooth-coloured material that is used as a filling. It is also called a white or plastic filling. The process of binding the filling material to the tooth is called bonding. It is placed into the cavity in layers until the tooth is restored to its original form. A light is used to harden it, and it can be chewed on immediately after it has been completed. This is the advantage it has over amalgam. The filling bonds or sticks to the tooth. This characteristic is a major advance for dentistry. There is no longer the need to cut a slot into a tooth to hold a filling in place, as is necessary for an amalgam filling. As a result less tooth needs to be cut away for a filling. It is hard wearing and is used for repairing front and back teeth.

An amalgam (not as commonly used these days) is an alloy or combination of two or more metals. Amalgam fillings are mixed and packed into cavities in teeth. It hardens slowly, and replaces the missing tooth substance. Amalgam fillings are held in place by the shape of the pre-drilled cavity. The cavity has to have an undercut to prevent the filling from falling out. The amalgam is then fixed into the cavity. Amalgam is extremely durable and able to withstand the grinding and chewing of your back teeth over long periods of time.

Please ask us about the different during your tooth filling treatment.

If the cavity is too deep or the damage to the tooth and root system too great then a more evasive procedure is done known as a root canal. We don’t remove the roots, but during a Root Canal Treatment, the inside or the pulp of the tooth is what is taken away. This is usually because infection has set in and saving the inner workings of the tooth is hopeless. To spare the person pain, this is removed but the roots remain intact. A crown is also required.

Root Canals are a bit more serious but even so, the end result is usually saving the tooth. Keeping your teeth for as long as possible is essential. If they are pulled, gaps int he mouth are created. This can lead to shifting and teeth becoming crooked. Dentures, plates and fixtures to replace missing teeth are also much more expensive than having a simple root canal.

Sometimes a Crown is sufficient instead of a root canal, if the damage to your tooth and root isn’t that great. Crowns are put on top of teeth sometimes after a filling, if the cavity is deep and much of the tooth needs to be drilled away.

What we are most concerned with is saving your teeth so you can keep them for the rest of your life.

Check out this sourced video on composite fillings: