A patient came to Time Dental based in Farnham, Surrey looking to ensure that his mouth stayed healthy. He had a number of mercury amalgam fillings placed as a child and was keen on replacing them as they now looked like black holes in his mouth. He wanted to maintain a healthy mouth and to be able to smile confidently.
On assessing his mouth his gums were bleeding due to a build up of plaque bacteria, and he had a number of failing mercury fillings. Mercury amalgam fillings actually expand and contract over time. When they get to a certain size their may not be a sufficient amount of tooth to support the cusps. This may result in the tooth breaking.
Fortunately there is a solution- the onlay. Normally as a replacement for large mercury amalgam fillings, the onlay covers and protects the biting surface of teeth. Onlays are made of tooth coloured ceramic but can be made of resin or gold. The other advantages of onlays are that the margins are high on the tooth that allows you to keep them plaque free and they are bonded in place that adds strength to the tooth.
The patient had a number of other small to medium sized mercury fillings that were failing. These could mercury fillings could be removed and made disease free and replaced with white composite resin fillings. Again due to the fact that they bond to the teeth it helps give strength.
Time Dental provides this service to patients in the Winchester area as well as Surrey, Hampshire, West sussex and Berkshire.
Time Dental- private dental care at its best