To treat a cavity your dentist will remove the decayed portion of the tooth and then “fill” the area on the tooth where the decayed material was removed. Fillings are also used to repair cracked or broken teeth and teeth that have been worn down from misuse (such as from nail-biting or tooth grinding). At Stephens Family Dentistry we use primarily Composite dental fillings to restore teeth back to function after cavity preparation. This is a tooth colored material that is mercury free and has some advantaged over amalgam filling commonly used in the past to restore teeth.

 

Advantages of composites:

1. Aesthetics — the shade/color of the composite fillings can be closely matched to the color of existing teeth. Composites are particularly well suited for use in front teeth or visible parts of teeth.
2. Bonding to tooth structure — composite fillings actually chemically bond to tooth structure, providing further support.
3. Versatility — in addition to use as a filling material for decay, composite fillings can also be used to repair chipped, broken, or worn teeth.
4. Tooth-sparing preparation — sometimes less tooth structure needs to be removed compared with amalgam fillings when removing decay and preparing for the filling.