Your Dental Health Guide to Types of Dental Fillings
Did you know that oral diseases affect an estimated 3.5 billion people worldwide? Tooth decay is the most common, present in two billion or about 43% of the global adult population. As many as 520 million children also suffer from untreated primary tooth decay.
Unfortunately, untreated tooth decay may lead to life-threatening infections.
The good news is that several types of dental fillings exist to treat and save decayed teeth. We’ve listed them below, so read on to know their pros and cons.
Amalgam Fillings
Amalgam fillings consist of about 50% elemental mercury by weight. A powdered alloy comprised of copper, silver, and tin accounts for the rest. Dentists have been using these dental fillings to save decayed teeth for more than 150 years.
One of the top benefits of amalgam fillings is that they’re the most affordable type of fillings. However, they have a silver-like appearance that makes them conspicuous. Thus, dentists often only use them to treat dental cavities in molars.
Gold Inlays
Also called gold onlays or gold fillings, gold inlays are metal fillings made of gold alloy. That means they’re not 100% gold but a mixture of other metals, such as copper.
Gold fillings are among the most expensive options for filling a dental cavity. However, they’re also one of, if not the most durable, as they can last for 20 years or longer.
Composite Fillings
Composite fillings consist of tooth-colored resin materials. They have a putty-like texture, making them flexible and easy to mold. Dentists then cure them, usually with laser light, to make them hard and adhere to the teeth.
Since composite fillings mimic the color of the teeth, they’re ideal for front teeth. They’re also excellent adult and pediatric dental fillings for small- to medium-sized cavities. Dentists even use them to fill minor diastemas, which are small and narrow gaps between the teeth.
Ceramic Fillings
Like composite fillings, ceramic fillings also resemble the natural color of the teeth. However, they consist of durable porcelain materials, not resin. The same materials also go into making dental veneers and crowns.
Ceramic fillings can cost as much as gold inlays but last just as long. They’re also less resistant to staining than their composite resin counterparts.
Glass Ionomer Fillings
Glass ionomer fillings consist of a material known as glass ionomer cement (GIC). It’s a mixture of alumina, calcium, and silica and, in many cases, includes fluorite, a source of fluoride. That addition can help boost the tooth’s resistance to dental decay.
GICs are becoming more popular since dentists can modify their physical properties. That allows the experts to create a filling tailored to their patient’s needs. For example, they can add some resin to the GIC to enhance its strength and durability.
To top it off, GICs are like composite and ceramic fillings in that they mimic the color of the teeth.
Choose the Right Types of Dental Fillings
There you have it, the guide to the types of dental fillings that can save decayed teeth. As discussed, many mimic the color of your teeth, so you don’t have to worry about metallic glint when you smile. However, don’t discount gold inlays, which can last for at least two decades.
The most crucial thing is to get your tooth decay treated ASAP to prevent complications.
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