Composite Fillings Leawood, KS

Tooth colored fillings at Dental Expressions of Leawood

Tooth colored fillings are a safer alternative to older silver amalgam fillings.  Dr.Bhoot and her associates can precisely match tooth colored fillings with the natural color of your teeth to provide you with the white fillings that are virtually invisible.  The removal of amalgam fillings can provide patients with white fillings that provide a more pleasing, silver free smile.  It has been discovered that the mercury fillings in your mouth function similarly to metal outside the mouth. When exposed to cold and hot temperatures, such as cold ice cream or hot coffee, the silver fillings in your mouth expand and contract. As they move, they eventually weaken the teeth and may cause the tooth to crack. This shifting also creates space between the filling and the tooth allowing bacteria to get in under the filling, causing decay underneath.

Properties of Tooth colored fillings

They are made of a composite resin and this filling material comes a wide range of colors.  A tooth colored filling is also referred to as bonding.    They have become more popular over the years.  Due to the possible dangers associated with amalgam fillings, more and more patients are having their cavities filled with composites.

Cost of Composite White Fillings

The cost of this filling material can very.  If a silver filling is chipped or cracked, dental insurance may pay for part of the cost of replacement.  Replacing amalgam fillings with tooth colored fillings is a simple procedure.  It can make a big difference in your smile!

Inlay / Onlay

When more than half of the tooth’s biting surface is damaged, our dentists will often use an inlay or onlay. This is recommended in teeth where the size of the filling is too large to place a regular tooth colored filling, but smaller than that which would necessitate a crown. Traditional fillings can decrease the strength of a natural tooth by up to 50%.

As an alternative, inlays and onlays, which are bonded directly onto the tooth can actually increase the strength of a tooth by up to 75 percent. As a result, they can last from 10 to 30 years.

What are inlays and onlays made of?

Inlays and onlays can be made of porcelain, gold, or composite resin. These pieces are bonded to the damaged area of the tooth. An inlay, which is similar to a filling, is used inside the cusp tips of the tooth. An onlay is a more substantial reconstruction, similar to the inlay but extending out over one or more of the cusps of the tooth.

In our office, inlays/onlays are milled in one visit through our virtual CAD/CAM technology called CEREC. It is a porcelain milled piece which has shown to provide significant strength due to new bonding technologies and a high level of aesthetics.

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