Dental Fillings Excellent to Save Your Tooth from Decay
When you allow tooth decay to penetrate the tooth enamel and create a cavity, your tooth is permanently damaged. Your tooth cannot repair itself, and the rot within is best restored with dental fillings from your dentist. You may think you can leave the cavity alone as it is just a hole in your tooth. However, when you realize the bacteria in the pit creates further damages to affect your dental and overall health, you undoubtedly contact your dentist for a solution.
When you visit your dentist for a checkup, the dentist evaluates the extent of the decay to determine whether a straightforward dental filling procedure is sufficient to prevent tooth decay from spreading. Do you need extensive treatment with root canal therapy to preserve your tooth? The former is straightforward and accomplished in approximately 30 minutes. Still, the latter requires a couple of visits to the dentist’s office for the endodontic treatment besides a restoration for your tooth with a dental crown.
What to Expect When Getting Dental Fillings
Straightforward dental fillings are simple. Your dentist examines your mouth using dental instruments to check the cavity. They may take x-rays to determine the extent of tooth decay. If the hole in your tooth isn’t significant, you receive local anesthesia to numb the tooth area. The anesthesia prevents you from experiencing dental fillings pain. However, if you need the filling on the tooth surface, you may not require anesthesia.
After the area is numb, the dentist will likely use a dental drill through the enamel to remove tooth decay. Other instruments are also available for removing decay but aren’t as popular as the dental drill. After decay removal, the dentist sterilizes and prepares the area for the filling and fills the hole. Some varieties of dental fillings are hardened with ultraviolet light. Eventually, the dentist will polish your tooth and check to ensure your bite is correct.
After numbing medication wears off, you experience soreness or sensitivity in the tooth of the filling. However, you aren’t likely to experience any discomfort. You must avoid scorching hot or freezing foods and beverages for a couple of days, but for the better part can eat normally.
What If You Have Extensive Decay in the Tooth?
Extensive decay in the tooth indicates you need endodontic treatment with root canal therapy. The therapy sounds fearsome but is an excellent method to save your natural tooth.
When you undergo root canal therapy, the dentist removes the infected or inflamed pulp from within your tooth before cleaning and disinfecting the canals and preparing it for a temporary dental filling. You must have the temporary filling removed as soon as possible to have your tooth restored with a permanent filling or a dental crown.
If you must undergo root canal treatment, you must prepare yourself to confront some discomfort after the procedure. The dentist provides instructions on managing the pain and discomfort until you have the tooth restored with a permanent filling.
What Kind of Fillings Can You Have for Tooth Decay?
Generally, straightforward dental fillings are accomplished in as little as 20 minutes. However, larger fillings or dental restorations require more time. The materials you choose for having the dental filling also determine how much time the procedure requires.
If you have chosen composite resin fillings for a straightforward cavity, the filling material is layered into your tooth and requires some time. However, the procedure is completed in one visit.
Some composite fillings are made from impressions and require a second visit to the dentist to bond the filling.
If you have chosen gold or porcelain fillings known as inlays of Onlays, you require more than one visit for the procedure. During your first visit, the dentist removes the decay and cavity and takes an impression of your tooth for the dental lab to fabricate the filling. The filling is bonded to your tooth during the next visit.
Dental fillings are excellent solutions to prevent tooth decay from spreading and creating additional damage. When you leave tooth decay untreated, it results in extensive damage within your tooth, making you susceptible to root canal treatments. Instead of allowing tooth decay to develop, why not merely maintain excellent dental hygiene, brushing twice a day, flossing at least once, and scheduling regular appointments with your dentist for checkups and cleanings? The routine helps prevent tooth decay altogether, eliminating the need for any dental fillings.