Westpark Helpful Dental Articles

Tooth Colored Fillings Offer Patients Many Advantages

The main point of creating a filling is to create a very durable tooth. Scientists use the term “newton centimeter” to describe the bite force placed on teeth during compression or chewing. The average patient can generate a bite force on a molar of anywhere from 250 to 400 newton centimeters. Modern materials for creating fillings are created to withstand a biting force of a minimum of 500 newton centimeters, which means that the filling can withstand more than the average patient’s bite will generate.

At West Park Dental we no longer use old-fashioned silver fillings, because, in addition to being very durable, there are other advantages to using tooth-colored fillings. Another advantage of tooth-colored fillings is that we can mimic the actual color of the patient’s enamel and achieve a result that is esthetically pleasing. In addition, the chemistry of tooth-colored fillings is such that it bonds to the patient’s own enamel—which was not possible with silver fillings that sat in the cavity and were glued in place and required removing a good amount of healthy tooth to make room for the filling.

Yet another advantage is that a tooth-colored fillings contains no mercury—it is completely metal free. There are people who do not want to have metal placed in their mouth, and now with these metal-free fillings this issue has been eliminated. With metal-free, tooth-colored fillings there is also no concern about expansion or contraction of the filling due to temperature changes—which was a problem with old-fashioned silver fillings.

Tooth colored fillings are strong, esthetically very attractive, they match the patient’s natural teeth, and they are not sensitive to temperature changes. They are excellent for patients and a great modern convenience in dentistry.

Dr. Michael E. Gallagher
West Park Dental
Cleveland, OH

New Patients Welcome
www.westparksmiles.com

Posted 01/04/2021

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