In the past, dentists used a silver and mercury metal material to fill and seal cavities. Because a larger amount of the natural tooth structure must be removed, these types of fillings often weaken teeth. Recent innovations now allow your Plano dentist and Melissa dentist to replace old silver fillings with composite fillings that are stronger, safer and more natural looking. Say goodbye to metal mouth and hello to a beautiful new smile.

Tooth fillings are intended to replace tooth structure lost to cavity or decay. If no treatment is performed the bacteria will keep destroying more tooth structure and the cavity will get bigger in size. The worst outcome of this is that either the cavity approaches the middle of the tooth where your nerves and blood vessels are or the bacteria destroy most of your tooth and the tooth cannot be saved at this point.

Dr. Haight has trained on all the advances in dental materials and composite fillings and offers new ways to create natural-looking smiles for his patients in Plano and McKinney Texas. Tooth-colored fillings also called composite fillings are hard to match.

Types of Tooth Fillings

• Amalgam – Amalgam is composed of a mixture of silver, copper, tin and mercury, all of which combine to form a strong and stable filling material. It is durable, easy to use, highly resist-ant to wear and relatively inexpensive compared with other materials.
• Composite – Composite fillings are a mixture of acrylic resin and finely ground glass like particles that produce a tooth-colored restoration. Composite fillings provide durability and resistance to fracture in small-to-midsized restorations that need to withstand moderate chewing pressure.
• Glass ionomers – Glass ionomers are tooth-colored materials made of a mixture of fine fluoride-containing glass powder and organic acid that forms a solid restoration able to release fluoride.

Advantages of Composite Fillings

• They better match natural tooth color and appearance
• They bond to tooth structure chemically
• The bonding of white fillings to the tooth restore 85% – 95% of the original strength of the tooth
• They completely harden in seconds instead of days required by some other materials
• Tooth sensitivity, if any, due to composite resin use is minimal and brief
• They may be used on front and back teeth without compromising aesthetics
• If damaged they can be repaired

The ultimate decision about what to use is best determined by the patient in consultation with Dr. Haight. The Plano Dentist, Dr. Haight always takes every factor into account when recommending a particular composite fillings material for your teeth. Schedule your appointment with Haight Family Dentistry today.