White Fillings to Treat Cavities at Vista Dental

By far the most common general dentistry procedure we perform after routine cleaning is a cavity filling. During a simple filling, we use our tools to numb the affected area and remove decayed tooth matter. To deal with the hole that remains, we fill it with a composite resin material.

In the past, the material used to fill a tooth varied greatly. In the old days, many people filled their cavities with gold! Gold is not a common filler material any longer, however. The traditional option is a silver composite amalgam, which was a compound of silver, mercury, copper, tin and zinc. The problem with this type of filling, many people find, is that the affected teeth have large and obvious silver metal spots on them.

For easily visible teeth, many people don’t want visible spots indicating their dental work. This is why we offer white fillings. White fillings are a new type of composite material made out of a plastic and glass resin. This white resin, when cured, turns the same color as the rest of your tooth. This way the tooth looks completely natural outside of direct scrutiny or an x-ray.

While we continue to offer other filling options, more and more people choose to have white fillings as the option of choice. We are always happy to answer any questions you have about filler materials and recommend one best for you.