Latest update February 10th, 2025 2:25 PM
DENTAL HEALTH…Demystifying Dental Filling Procedure – FILLING THE TOOTH
Dr. NerominiFagu
Last week we spoke about what is involved in preparing a tooth for a filling. We will continue this week with putting in the filling material in the prepared cavity. There are a number of choices when it comes to filling materials. These include amalgam (silver), composite (tooth coloured), gold, ceramic, and glass ionomer, to name a few.
DENTAL FILLING PROCEDURE
We will focus this week on the two most commonly used materials, amalgam and composite.
Amalgam filling has been a staple in dentistry for over a hundred and fifty years. It is a reliable material that can withstand the forces of chewing.Amalgam has come a long way from dentists manually mixing the alloy and mercury in a mortar and pestle, to pre-mixed capsules that are mixed by an amalgamator.
The traditional amalgam does not bond with your tooth, but is instead held in place in the tooth by mechanical retention. As such, more tooth structure has to be removed for placing this type of material.
The amalgam is placed in small amounts in the prepared tooth and special instruments are used to pack it down. Pressure is used to adapt the material to the walls of the tooth and to prevent voids. After amalgam is condensed in the cavity, it is carved to reproduce the proper tooth anatomy. This is done when the amalgam is hard enough to offer resistance to the carving.
Final shaping and contouring of the filling is done with various instruments. Seventy-five percent of the amalgam hardens after one hour, and it takes twenty four hours to completely set, thus, no chewing should be done on the filling during this time.
Composite fillings are more time consuming and also require a very dry area of work. This dry field isolation is best achieved using a rubber dam, but your dentist may also use cotton rolls and other materials to keep saliva away from the tooth. Tooth isolation is critical for composite fillings because it prevents moisture from interfering with the bonding process.
The first step in the process is to etch the tooth which is done with a gel that is left in place on the tooth for thirty seconds. The gel is then washed off and the tooth surface is lightly dried. Next, a bonding agent is applied and thinned with short bursts of air.
Your dentist will use a special machine that emits a blue light to “cure” (harden) the bonding agent. Depending on the materials your dentist is using, sometimes the etching and bonding are combined into one step.
Then the composite is placed in small incremental layers into the cavity, which helps to strengthen the filling. Each layer is hardened with the curing light. For the final layer, your dentist will sculpt the proper tooth anatomy before hardening the material. The dental drill along with different types of burs may also be used to carve the proper tooth anatomy in the hardened composite.
Once this has been achieved, the restoration is polished and sealed with a protective coating. Because the bonded filling is fully hardened after it is put in place, there is no need to wait before using it.
After restoring your tooth, your dentist will check the “bite” of the filling using a special carbon paper. You will be asked to mimic chewing motions and high points on the amalgam or composite fillings will be highlighted. These high points will be reduced by your dentist to ensure comfort.
You may experience some sensitivity in your tooth for a few days but this should go away. As fillings don’t usually last forever, you should have your dentist check them periodically to ensure that they are still sound.
For more information contact OMNI DENTAL at 295 Quamina Street, Georgetown Tel: 227-0025, Parika Tel: 260-3133 or send emails to [email protected].
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