Dental fillings
For a cavity found at a check-up, a chipped tooth, or an old filling that has failed.
A filling takes the decay out of a tooth and rebuilds the part that is missing, usually with tooth-coloured composite. It is the smallest repair a tooth can have, and doing it early is what stops a small cavity becoming a root canal or a crown.
Any of these sound familiar?
- A check-up or X-ray shows decay between two teeth, before you can feel anything.
- Cold or sweet things give one tooth a short, sharp twinge.
- You can feel a rough edge, a hole or a catch with your tongue.
- An old silver filling has a crack around it, or the tooth around it has gone grey.
- Food packs into the same spot at every meal and floss shreds there.
Start to finish.
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01
Numbing
The tooth is frozen and tested before the drill starts. A shallow cavity on the surface sometimes needs no freezing at all, and Dr. Malik will say so.
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02
Clearing the decay
Dr. Malik removes the softened part of the tooth and leaves the healthy part behind. How deep it goes depends on how long the cavity has been sitting there.
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03
Building the tooth back
Tooth-coloured composite goes in in layers, and each layer is set hard with a blue light. The shade is matched to the tooth beside it and shaped back to the grooves it had.
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04
Checking the bite
You bite on a strip of coloured paper so any high spot shows up, and it is adjusted until the bite feels normal. Then the filling is polished smooth so plaque has less to hold on to.
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05
The days after
Numbness wears off in an hour or two; go carefully with hot drinks until it does, and mind your cheek. Some sensitivity to cold for a week or two is normal and should settle.
What it costs, and who pays.
A filling is usually one visit, and two or three small ones on the same side of the mouth can often be done in the same appointment. Fillings are billed by how many surfaces of the tooth are involved, so a small pit is less than one that wraps around a corner. Most plans cover a good share of fillings. Some older plans pay the silver-filling rate on back teeth and you pay the difference for white, and we tell you when that applies.
Ask for a written estimateDental fillings, answered.
Does getting a filling hurt?
The area is numbed first, and most people feel pressure and water rather than pain. The freezing is the part people mind, so it goes in slowly, and we stop if you need a break.
How long does a filling last?
Composite fillings often last many years, but nothing in the mouth is permanent. Size, how hard you chew, grinding at night and how clean the edge stays all decide it, which is why fillings are checked at every visit.
Can I eat straight after a filling?
The composite is set hard before you leave, so the filling itself is ready. Wait until the numbness has gone so you do not bite your cheek or scald yourself.
What happens if I leave a small cavity alone?
It gets bigger, and it stays quiet until it reaches the nerve. A cavity caught early is a filling; the same tooth two years later can need a root canal and a crown.
