Dental fillings
Dental Health and Tooth Fillings
To treat a cavity your dentist will remove the decayed portion of the tooth and then "fill" the area on the tooth where the decayed material once lived.
Fillings are also used to repair cracked or broken teeth and teeth that have been worn down from misuse (such as from nail-biting or tooth grinding).
Source: webmd.com - experts dentists help you understand how dental fillings work ...
Dental treatments - fillings and crowns
Fillings are used to fill holes (cavities) that have formed, usually as a result of decay or tooth wear. There are many types of filling, each suitable for different cavities.
Most people have a local anaesthetic injection to completely numb the area while the filling is being done. The numbness can take several hours to wear off.
The decayed and weakened parts of the tooth are removed using small drills and the hole is washed.
If the hole has spread to the side wall of the tooth, a band will be placed around the tooth with a small wedge holding it in place. This ensures that the filling hardens into the correct shape.
To protect the tiny nerves and blood vessels inside the tooth, very thin layers of underlinings, such as resin, are painted inside the hole before the filling material is packed in. The filling will begin to harden during the first few minutes or, for some materials, a blue light is used to make it set within a few seconds.
Sometimes temporary fillings are used where there may not be enough time to do the full treatment, at emergency appointments for example. Temporary fillings can last for quite a long time, but they are not very strong so you must always arrange to have a durable filling placed within a few weeks.
Source: bupa.co.uk - highlights on common dental treatments like fillings and crowns ...
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