Dental Filling: Causes & Treatment

What is a dental filling?

Dental filling is a treatment that helps to restore the damaged part of a tooth, with the aim to protect it. After cleaning the area and removing the damaged parts, the dentist uses specific materials in order to fill the hole, which has been created and prevent the entry of other bacteria that can cause further decay.

Causes of partial tooth loss

One of the main causes that provokes partial tooth loss – destruction is dental decay, while in rare cases it might be due to some injury that has occurred through collision.

What is tooth decay and how is it caused?

Tooth decay is one of the most common teeth diseases and concerns their alteration, creating holes. Specific microbes that live in the oral cavity and are sustained by food residues, such as sugar and dairy products, can cause this. In other words, through their action, they produce acids, which tend to erode the tooth from outside in. The combination of these microorganisms and poor oral hygiene can therefore cause tooth decay with temporary or even permanent results.

How to cope with this phenomenon?

Since tooth decay has the tendency to penetrate the tooth and alter its shape by creating holes, the solution of the sealing becomes necessary. This happens because the lost volume of the tooth must be replenished, with the aim to protect its inner and deeper part.
When the dentist performs a filling, he aims to fill the gap that has been created, after disinfecting the tooth. Then with the use of a special material, he tries to create a barrier to protect the remaining tooth, but also to restore it visually, producing an aesthetically pleasing result.

Dental filling

Types of dental fillings

Tooth fillings are divided into two categories, black and white coloured. Black coloured tooth fillings are made of amalgam, an alloy of silver, tin and copper. This is one of the most durable occlusive materials, while at the same time their price is economical, a fact that have made them very popular. Although, doubts are raised from time to time about the quality of the specific material and its safety, no research confirms the induction of any kind of toxic substances, which are harmful to health. However, the removal and replacement of black tooth fillings must be done with care by the appropriate surgeon – dentist.

The advantages of black tooth fillings include the resistance to moisture, which allows the filling of very deep holes, as well as their long lasting results. On the other hand, amalgam as a material is quite malleable and does not have the ability to stick to the tooth. For this reason, more effort is required by the dentist to sculpt the cavity to accept it, which can cost a lot of tooth substance. There is also a risk of injuring the tooth itself overtime, while the aesthetic result is not uniform. Moreover, the use of black fillings is therefore indicated for areas that are not easily visible, as well as for patients who do not have an allergy to any of the above materials.

On the other hand, white tooth fillings have become very popular in recent years. These are made of resin-based composites, a polymer material, which can provide the maximum aesthetic effect. This material tends to adapt to the colour of the teeth, providing a natural and uniform result. In addition, a very malleable substance characterises them, something that permits their direct placement into the cavity, gluing and stabilisation, helping them to imitate the appearance of the rest of the teeth. After performing a white tooth filling, the patient is able to eat directly. Also, the restoration of a specific part of the filling that might be detached can be easier and locally applied. However, the disadvantage of white fillings is that they cannot last forever, because they are more fragile, they deteriorate, they break and require colour maintenance, a factor that can be affected by food pigment, such as the one that can be spotted in coffee.

Dental filling: The process

Tooth filling is an easy process, which comprises of particular stages. More specifically, the dentist starts the procedure with local anaesthesia to the infected tooth, which is sharpened and internally cleaned by the infectious bacteria. Then, he examines the remaining tooth carefully and according to its position and geometry, he proceeds to fill the cap. For this procedure it has to be mentioned that appropriate materials and techniques are mandatory. Depending on the incident, certain components are used, such as artificial metal walls or transparent membranes to delineate the tooth and rebuilt its structure. Then adhesive agents are placed, in order to contribute to the placement and sculpting of the material. Finally, after the tooth structure has been restored, the material is being sharpened and smoothed, with the aim to be adapted into the patient’s oral cavity.

Is dental filling a painful process?

The procedure of tooth filling is not painful, due to the fact that the dentist applies local anaesthesia to the infected tooth before the operation. However, the pain can vary between the patients, as well as the seriousness of each incident separately. In fillings with big depth that are close to tooth root, the observation of sensitivity after the operation is possible. Even though this fact is expected to happen, the frequent communication with the dentist and the adherence to his instructions is recommended.

Maintenance of dental fillings

Maintaining a tooth filling in its initial condition, depends on a variety of factors, such as oral hygiene, diet, the size of the tooth filling and the materials that have been used. Also, it has to be mentioned that in some cases the replacement of tooth fillings is necessary. In circumstances like tooth filling breakage, partial tooth breakage, tooth filling hurt and visible tooth filling edges, the seal has to be replaced. For this reason regular monitoring of the patient’s oral condition by the dentist is recommended, due to the fact that prevention is the best treatment!