At Free State Dental we are an amalgam (silver fillings) free dental office. If you need to have a filling placed due to a cavity, we utilize the best composite resin (tooth colored fillings) to restore your tooth to its full function and esthetics.
We offer a full range of dental restoration including CEREC crowns and veneers. Using the latest in dental restoration technology (CAD-CAM), we are able to complete most restorations in only one visit. This completely eliminates the need for traditional impressions and temporary crowns. Our restorations often require less removal of your natural tooth giving you the most natural look and feel possible.
If you are experiencing an unexplained pain from filled back teeth, it is likely due to hairline fractures/cracks in the chewing part of the tooth. Placing crowns on these teeth allows you to regain a full dental function since the pain has been relieved.
Amalgam fillings vs. Composite fillings
Most people recognize amalgams as silver fillings. An amalgam is a mixture of mercury, silver, tin and copper. Mercury, which makes up about 50 percent of the compound, is necessary to bind the metals together to provide a strong, hard, durable filling. The mercury does have a tendency to expand and contract within the tooth structure leaving the natural tooth susceptible to breaking and fracturing. The amalgam material is also toxic to the environment.
Therefore, we like to use a composite material when filling a tooth. This material has a more stable disposition and also allows us to take less of the natural tooth structure away during the process of filling.
A composite filling is made of ceramic and plastic compounds. Because resins mimic the appearance of natural teeth, these fillings have been commonly used on front teeth for years. In the last 10 years, technology has improved enough to allow the use of resin materials on posterior or back teeth. And so there are both durable and aesthetically pleasing.
