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Artisan Dentistry's Blog

How Do Fillings Stay in Place? A Dentist in Newburyport Has the Scoop.

Sep 13th, 2023

Have you ever wondered how a dentist can place a filling and it will just stay in place without falling out due to gravity or eating sticky foods? This was a challenge many dentists had to contend with back in the day but luckily innovative techniques and materials have solved the issue. Here’s how dentists get fillings to stay in place.

Dental Drilling Techniques

Before the advent of composite dental fillings, dentists relied on drilling techniques to keep the silver-colored amalgam dental fillings in place. Dentist would drill a significant amount of the enamel and dentin of a tooth in order to create the empty space needed to have filling that would be wedged in place and not fall out. With modern drilling tools dentists were able to refine their techniques but a lot of drilling and removal of the tooth structure is still necessary to make the fillings work.

The issue with doing such extensive drilling is that may structures of the tooth that are used to support the tooth are being removed, making it more likely for the tooth to crack over time. This, in addition to concerns about mercury in the amalgam fillings, as well as patient demands for a more aesthetic solution, has lead to the development of composite dental fillings.

Composite Dental Fillings and Bonding

Over time, scientists and engineers developed dental cements that allow dentists to essentially cement a filling into place. This development has changed the industry in multiple ways:

  • The advent of white composite fillings – With the new cements that were developed, dentists were now able to use materials other than metal for dental fillings. The standard is now a composite resin material that is layered unto the tooth and cemented in place with a dental bonding agent. These fillings are not only more aesthetically pleasing since they can match the shade of the tooth, but also better for the tooth and environment.
  • Conservative dentistry – Since the dental bonding agent is now used to keep the dental filling in place, less of the tooth structure needs to be drilled in order to create a structure that can keep the filling in place. This had lead dentists to remove as little of the tooth as possible before placing the filling conserving as much of the natural tooth as possible.
  • Biomimetic dentistry – As an offshoot of conservative dentistry, the field of biomimetic dentistry has also exploded. This approach to dental fillings not only conserves as much of the original tooth as possible, but also tries to match the shape of the original tooth as well. Dentists recognize that the drilling could contribute to the removal of essential tooth structures that could weaken the tooth and cause it to crack over time. With the extreme control and precision that’s available with shaping composite fillings, dentists can now recreate these essential tooth structures with bonding agents and composite filling material.

The science and technology of dentistry has come a long way over the years and our dental office in Newburyport stays on top of all the latest developments in order to offer only the best to our patients. If you are interested in becoming a patient at our dental office don’t hesitate to call or request an appointment online.

Warranty

Our 5 Year Warranty

Anyone can train to be a technician, but few have the talent to become an artist. That’s why Dr. Mathew is able to guarantee his cosmetic dentistry work for a full 5 years. If anything goes wrong with the work, Dr. Mathew will fix it free of charge, as long as you continue with your regular 6 month preventative care cleaning and check up for the duration of the warranty.

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Treatment Rooms

Our individualized treatment rooms and operatories provide patients with maximum privacy and comfort. The treatment rooms were built specifically with your comfort in mind.

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Here at Paul Mathew, D.D.S. we work diligently to protect our patients' privacy. Requesting an appointment via our Internet portal is considered part of what the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has identified as electronically protected healthcare information or ePHI. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, there are people or entities that may attempt to intercept the data you transmit to us. By checking the "I agree" box, and electronically making an appointment request, you acknowledge that you are making an appointment over the internet and that Paul Mathew, D.D.S. will keep this information confidential but cannot guarantee that others, outside of our practice, may illegally intercept this communication. By accepting these terms and conditions and sending this request via our Internet portal, you accept the inherent risk(s) associated with making this request for an appointment. If you do not accept the terms and conditions, you are always welcome to contact our office via telephone to schedule your appointment.

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Here at Paul Mathew, D.D.S. we work diligently to protect our patients' privacy. Requesting an appointment via our Internet portal is considered part of what the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has identified as electronically protected healthcare information or ePHI. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, there are people or entities that may attempt to intercept the data you transmit to us. By checking the "I agree" box, and electronically making an appointment request, you acknowledge that you are making an appointment over the internet and that Paul Mathew, D.D.S. will keep this information confidential but cannot guarantee that others, outside of our practice, may illegally intercept this communication. By accepting these terms and conditions and sending this request via our Internet portal, you accept the inherent risk(s) associated with making this request for an appointment. If you do not accept the terms and conditions, you are always welcome to contact our office via telephone to schedule your appointment.

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The information presented here is not intended or implied to be medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. It should be used for informational purposes only.