What You Should Know about Composite Dental Fillings

If you have a cavity, our dentist will recommend a dental filling, which will restore the tooth’s function and protect it from further damage. In some cases, you may have old metal, or amalgam, fillings that are discolored, leaking or simply unsightly. Our Beverly Hills full mouth reconstruction specialist may recommend using composite dental fillings.

Composite resin fillings offer a more natural-looking alternative to amalgam fillings. They can be made to match the color of your own teeth quite closely so that the filled teeth will be virtually indistinguishable from your other teeth. They are made of a quartz and resin mixture, which gives it a translucent appearance, and it bonds chemically with the tooth, which means less tooth structure needs to be removed to place the filling.

If you are a candidate for a composite dental filling, our dentist will first remove the area of decay or the old filling and prepare your tooth. Once the composite resin is placed and shaped, it will be cured using a high-intensity light. This light cures it and hardens it, bonding it to the tooth in a way that prevents bacteria from accessing the vulnerable area beneath the filling.

Because the filling process takes longer than traditional metal fillings, it is a more expensive process. Not all dental insurers cover the procedure at the same rate that they do amalgam fillings, and some may not cover composite resin fillings at all or consider them to be cosmetic in nature. However, composite resin fillings perform an important function. They are strong and long-lasting, and teeth are generally less likely to fracture when they have been filled using composite dental fillings.

Contact us today to learn more or to schedule your appointment with our Beverly Hills smile makeover specialist.

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