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Dental Fillings

When do I need a filling for my tooth?

The decay progresses in the tooth step by step. As we have seen in the earlier section that when the decay reaches the pulp (nerve) of the tooth we need a root canal treatment. But when the decay has not approached the pulp, the dentist can very efficiently remove only the decayed part by drilling and eventually filling the cavity.

When do I know whether I need a filling?

The initial signs of decay or cavity is food getting stuck in between teeth. Or in few patients, they may notice a sudden hole formed while chewing food, etc. it is necessary that the patient visits the dentist immediately to get the tooth filled and avoid a root canal treatment.

How does the doctor know that the tooth needs filling?

A tooth that has initial decay or cavity does not pain. On the contrary, there are few teeth which have decay that has reached the pulp, but still the patient does not have any pain. So when the patient visits the dentist, he collecets information regarding the symptoms that the patient perceives. He might also take an Xray of the tooth. So analysing all the data he comes to a conclusion whether that particular tooth would be needing a root canal treatment or a simple filling.

What are the types of filling?

There are 2 varieties of filling: direct and indirect. Let's understand the same.

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Direct: These are the types of fillings, where the dentist has the filling material available with him. So the most common material used is composite. The material is in a soft consistency to start with. The dentist places this material in the drilled tooth and with a special ultraviolet light this soft material turns hard. The other material available is called as dental amalgam commonly referred to as “silver”. This material is not tooth coloured.

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Indirect: This is a type of filling which is fabricated in the laboratory. So once the dentist has drilled the cavity he takes a measurement (impression) and sends it to a dental laboratory. The laboratory then fabricates the tooth and sends it back to the dentist. This filling is now glued to the tooth by the dentist.

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