Advantages of white fillings from our dentist
If you had fillings or crowns fitted in the 1980s or 1990s, chances are you had an amalgam restorative fitted.
In recent years, however, amalgam restoratives, which are a mixture of different kinds of metal, have been mainly removed from dental surgeries unless absolutely necessary. Indeed, composite fillings and crowns are now commonplace in dental surgery restoratives and offer a range of benefits over traditional metal options.
When you come to see our team at Brisbane General and Laser Dentists, our dentist Coorparoo will always be happy to merge functionality of having a restoration with cosmetics, and this will ensure that whether you need to have an entire tooth replaced or just a filling fitted, the aesthetic change to your smile will be natural looking.
So, with that in mind, what are some of the advantages of the famous ‘white fillings’ that our dentist Coorparoo fits? Read on to find out!
Aesthetics
OK, so starting with the obvious one, a core advantage of having white fillings fitted by our dentist Coorparoo is that they are unnoticeable.
Indeed, if you require a filling at the front of your mouth, amalgam is not going to be ideal, and composite allows our team to colour-match the addition with the surrounding tooth. This means that whether you are having a set of fillings fitted or a crown, no one will be able to spot either.
Minimally invasive
In order to fit a filling or a crown, it requires our team to drill the decay away and only leave the healthy parts of the tooth. When a traditional amalgam filling or crowns were fitted, it required more of the healthy tooth to be removed. With composite, it is less invasive, as it can be fitted successfully with more of the healthy tooth intact, as there is no concern about the post-fitting expansion of the material.
Longer lasting
You may be concerned about what is meant by post-fitting expansion.
When amalgam is fitted to a tooth, as it is a metal mixture, when it is exposed to heat that can come into contact with it via drinks or food, it expands. And on the opposite side, when you drink cold beverages like iced water, the amalgam is prone to shrinking. Therefore, these fillings and crowns may have a detrimental effect on your teeth, meaning that they could be more prone to falling out if they expand or contract.
Composite does not react to hot or cold stimuli; thus, any restorative made from composite will last longer than their amalgam counterparts.
Fluoride
There are different kinds of composite fillings, with one of the most commonly used options being a GI filling or glass-ionomer filling.
This filling type allows fluoride within the material to come into contact with the tooth that has been damaged by decay, thus preventing further tooth decay and restoring the remaining tooth that may have been weakened by a lack of fluoride. So, some fillings also have restorative benefits too!
Functional
You may think that when comparing composite to metal, metal would be the harder material. But, when it comes to dental care, over long periods of biting and chewing, composite is sturdier as it doesn’t react to heat changes, thus making it the more functional material of the two.
DISCLAIMER
All treatment carries risks. Individual consultation is required with one of our practitioners to ensure that the treatment is right for you.