| WHAT IS COMPOSITE RESIN

Composite resin is a mixture of microscopic glass and plastic particles that can be customized to match your tooth. The material is pliable, easy to work with, and it bonds directly to your tooth, which makes it durable and strong.

Besides the aesthetic benefits for your smile, composite fillings also offer other benefits for patients over metal fillings, such as:

• Longevity | Metal fillings tend to break down due to temperature changes in the mouth that cause expansion and contraction.

• Preserves your natural tooth | Composite fillings don’t require as much tooth structure to be removed for placement as metal fillings. This allows you to maintain more of your natural tooth, which is always our goal.

• Durability | Direct bonding of composite to your tooth ensures less breakdown over time and helps make your tooth strong.

| DENTAL BONDING

Dental bonding is a procedure that can eliminate some cosmetic imperfections, such as:

• Small fractures and chipping

• Irregularly shaped teeth

• Gaps between teeth

• Stains or discoloration

Dental bonding is a conservative way to restore chipped, crooked, or discolored teeth.  This procedure utilizes a white filling “bonded” to your tooth in order to help improve the aesthetics.  Because the white filling material comes in a variety of different shades, we will closely match it to your other teeth in order to give you a natural, beautiful smile.

Bonding is more affordable than some other cosmetic treatment options while also having the added benefit of being completed in one office visit.  However, dental bonding can stain and chip more frequently than stronger porcelain alternatives (like dental veneers or crowns).

If there are some cosmetic changes you’d like to make to the appearance of your teeth, bonding is a non-invasive and affordable procedure that can significantly enhance your smile. Our office would love to talk with you about your options for achieving your best smile.

Tooth-colored Composite Fillings

Gone are the days of having an unsightly metal filling diminish your smile! Modern dentistry has made great strides in creating durable and aesthetically-pleasing composite resin fillings to repair cavities and complement your smile. We can even use composite for a procedure called bonding that can cover and improve small cosmetic concerns.

If you would like to learn more about tooth-colored fillings or dental bonding, we encourage you to contact our office at 714-486-1822  for more information or to schedule an appointment.

If you have a tooth that needs repair or replacement, it’s a good idea to consider treatment as soon as possible to avoid further damage to your smile. Contact IVY DENTAL today for more information and to schedule your dental appointment.

Warning Signs

Sensitive teeth are the most common early warning sign of enamel loss due to tooth decay. While there could be a number of reasons for this sensation, only your dentist can diagnose its underlying cause. If a damaged tooth surface is not treated early, your discomfort will increase.

When Prescribed

A teeth filling prescription is made when:

• The surface enamel of a tooth is damaged due to decay, fracture, or wear.

• A tooth's surface needs to be evened out to improve your ability to bite or chew.

Patient Experience

After a thorough exam of your teeth, gums and supporting bone structure, your dentist will discuss treatment options with you and answer your questions. If the agreed-upon treatment is a dental filling, your dentist will:

• Apply a local anesthetic to the affected area of your mouth

• Use a hand-held instrument to prepare your tooth by removing the decayed or damaged tooth surface

• Cleanse the prepared tooth to remove debris and bacteria

• Select the dental filling material based on the placement of the tooth, the location of the damaged area of the tooth, and the extent of its surface damage

• Apply adhesives and filling material to the prepared area and shape it to match the look and feel of a natural tooth

• Expose a special hand-held light to the filling material to harden the repaired surface of your tooth

| WHY FILLINGS ARE IMPORTANT

If your dentist spots decay in your tooth, it can usually be treated easily with a simple, tooth-colored filling.

If tooth decay is left untreated or undiagnosed because you haven’t visited your dentist, it will gradually get worse and could eventually reach the nerve of your tooth and result in an infection. An untreated tooth infection could lead to tooth loss, not to mention it could spread to other teeth or more critical areas of your body.

Visiting IVY DENTAL every six months is the best way for you to stay on top of your dental health and treat any concerns before they become more significant problems. Being proactive about your dental health saves you time in the dental chair and money in the long run.

Real Life Cases

If you made it this far, you must be really interested in this procedure! Let’s check out a few completed cases.

A patient presents with large cavitations on the cheek side of his tooth due to clenching/ brushing too hard. If no treatment is done, the tooth will eventually wear into the NERVE and a ROOT CANAL will be needed. Luckily for the patient, he came in time to fill his tooth WITHOUT the need for a root canal.