Fillings

Fillings tackle decay and associated pain, restoring your tooth to health again.

Reduce your chances of developing a filling by never missing a routine dentist appointment. During these appointments, we can spot any signs of early decay and ensure we take X-rays at appropriate intervals to check for decay underneath old crowns and fillings. Finding and treating any decay as early as possible means we can keep as many teeth as possible. This can sometimes help to avoid root canal treatment or having to remove a tooth.

Why do I need a filling?

Fillings are placed when part of the tooth has been chipped/broken or decayed. Tooth decay, cavities and dental caries can all occur when sugar sticks onto the tooth surface and bacteria feed off this sugar and create a hole in the tooth. If this decay continues to the centre of the tooth where the nerves sit, (the pulp) it can cause a toothache and may need a root canal treatment or a dental extraction.

If you think you may have a hole in your tooth, you should visit us at your earliest convenience, so we can take a look and make a plan to restore the tooth in the most streamlined way possible. This may be with a simple filling, an onlay or a crown.

What to expect from a filling

Under local anaesthetic, the decay or damaged matter is removed from your tooth, exposing the cavity. For white fillings, we use a blue gel to clean the tooth and remove all the debris. We then carefully place a dental bonding material onto the tooth surface to allow the filling to stick to the tooth. This is set with a blue light before the filling is built up in small increments. Each time an increment is placed, the dentist or dental nurse will use the blue light to set it. The filling may need smoothing down and adjusting after it has been placed and the dentist will check that the teeth bite down correctly.

Why fillings?

• Protect your teeth from further decay.
• Treat pain and sensitivity.
• Restore chipped teeth.
• Restore broken teeth.
• Fill cavities to prevent food getting trapped.
• Choose white fillings for a discreet cosmetic result.

Aftercare

After pointers include:

• If you had the area numbed up with local anaesthetic, it may take 2-4 hours to wear off. Avoid biting your lip and tongue while these areas are numb.
• Take extra care when having hot drinks to avoid burning your mouth and lips.
• Brush your teeth twice daily as well as floss or interdental brushes to help keep the filling clean.

It may take 2 weeks for the filling to settle and the area may be a little more sensitive to cold during this time. After 2 weeks, if the sensitivity does not improve or if it feels tender to bite on then please give us a call so we can have another look at it. In some instances, fillings require a bit of extra adjusting, in order for your teeth to meet correctly when you bite down.