Tooth-Colored Fillings, White Fillings
Philadelphia, Main Line, and Ardmore, Pennsylvania Cosmetic Dentist
If you are like most people, you do not much like the appearance of metal fillings. Tooth-colored fillings, also known as white fillings, can effectively restore decaying teeth and can replace old metal fillings. They are made of a composite resin with components including silicone dioxide and plastic. Philadelphia Cosmetic Dentist, Dr. Lindsey Marshall's Philadelphia, Pennsylvania cosmetic dental practice is mercury-free and metal-free and offers white fillings and porcelain fillings, but no metal amalgam.
White Fillings vs. Metal Fillings
Unlike gray metal, white fillings look completely natural and Dr. Marshall can color them to match your own tooth enamel. The procedure is much like the old amalgam procedure with two differences:
- The composite resin is metal- and mercury-free; and
- It is bonded to the tooth rather than just packed tightly into the cavity
By being bonded to the tooth, it pulls inward on the tooth’s periphery, holding it together. This is in contrast to metal fillings, which exert outward pressure and will eventually fracture the tooth. Tooth-colored fillings also benefit you by requiring less healthy tooth tissue to be removed. When a metal filling is placed, the cavity must be shaped so as to hold it in, and must be given a ridged surface, and that usually requires removal of some healthy tissue. Bonding eliminates that necessity.
White Fillings vs. Porcelain Fillings
Tooth-colored fillings do not have as much of a pearly sheen as porcelain fillings, although they are white and matched to your natural teeth. Tooth-colored fillings are also not quite as durable as porcelain fillings. The issue of which type to have can be discussed with Dr. Marshall and will be affected by which tooth needs the filling. If you need a filling on a front surface of a front tooth, you might consider porcelain instead of composite.
A word of caution if you are considering a teeth whitening treatment: white composite will not be affected by the bleaching agent. So you should have the whitening treatment done before your new fillings are placed. This way, Dr. Marshall can match the fillings to your new tooth color.
If you live in the Philadelphia, Ardmore, or Main Line, Pennsylvania area and you are interested in white fillings and would like to know more about safe ways of filling a tooth cavity, please contact the cosmetic dentistry practice of Cosmetic Dentist, Dr. Lindsey F. Marshall today for a tooth colored fillings consultation.
602 The Times BuildingSuburban Square
Ardmore, PA 19003
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