Friday, May 21, 2010

How good is white tooth filler for cavities?

I have been told by the dentist I could get either the metal stuff or white stuff put in to fill my cavities. Any opinions on which is better? Personal experience best, thanks

How good is white tooth filler for cavities?
Plastic fillings look great, however since they are very technique sensative and tend to fail catastrophically when they fail we charge more for them. they fail by what we call debonding so a thin open crevace is formed and liquids and sugars can flow easily in and out to form very large cavities fast, 1 -2 years after debonding. Debonding isn't as great a problem in the front teeth because those are the teeth you look at everyday. So your more likely to see it and get to the dentist if you see a large brown stain in your teeth.





Metal fillings do last a long time and are good for people who are not as reliable as dental patients. Metal filling do fail but the types of failures I see with metal fillings are often savable. cracked cusps and so on relatively easy to save.





Both are prone to reccurent decay, jusk the risk of failure is far greater in a plastic posterior filling than an anterior. If your a good patient and come in every six months and are willing to accept the increased cost for plastic, go for it!. If you loathe your appointments are likely to stop for several years between treatments then go amalgam.





good luck
Reply:the white stuff blends better.. looks more natural.. the metal fillings will look like cavities to others, should they be able to see them...


i've had both... they both work fine and i feel more comfortable with the white ones..
Reply:The problem with the metal is that it does what is called thermocycling. That means it expands and contracts with changes in temporature. Over time this will cause the filling to separate from the tooth and allow decay to reform under the filling. Also causes small cracks to form in tooth. The average lifespan for this type of filling is about 5-7 years. Not to say that people dont have them much longer, but after this amount of time they usually have recurrent decay under them.
Reply:If esthetics is of major concern to you, then you should request the white filling (composite). However, metal (silver amalgam)'s main advantage are that they are incredibly durable, not likely to break, and last a LONG time.





I like composite more. There is NO comparison between the appearance of a white filling and an amalgam. The results are so esthetically superior. And most importantly, composite (white/tooth color) restorations can be repaired while most amalgam restorations cannot.


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