Dental Fillings An Overview
Dental fillings are used to restore beauty, health and strength to teeth that are affected by tooth decay or damage. Charlotte, NC Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Richard Van Gurp offers several choice in material for tooth fillings including composite materials and porcelain for the most natural looking restorations.
Dr. Van Gurp will evaluate the overall condition of your dental health and discuss your cosmetic goals before recommending the most appropriate tooth filling options for meeting your needs.
Dental Fillings What to Expect
In most cases, your filling will be placed during a single visit to our Charlotte dentist office. Using advanced technology to painlessly deliver an anesthetic, you will experience little to no discomfort during the procedure and leave with a healthy new smile.
White Fillings
For a tooth that has a minimal defect or decay, a composite tooth colored filling is often the best treatment. When a moderate amount of decay is present in the back teeth, Dr. Van Gurp may recommend a porcelain filling. The greater the damage to the tooth, the stronger the material needed to restore its strength and stability.
White fillings can be used to replace old, dark or leaky amalgam fillings, often providing an instant smile makeover.
Resin Dental Fillings
Tooth Colored Resins Treat Small Cavities and Enhance Dental Imperfections
Natural in appearance and texture, composite fillings are suitable for both the front and back teeth. They don’t corrode and weaken teeth like mercury fillings do.
In this process, a tooth-colored resin that looks like the enamel of your teeth is molded and shaped, and then hardened and polished.
Composite resins are used to treat small cavities, while also cosmetically enhancing tooth color and reshaping disfigured teeth.
Porcelain Dental Fillings
Natural Looking, Porcelain Fillings are Recommended When Replacing Old Fillings
Once the decay or damage in a back tooth reaches a certain level – as in the case of a deeper cavity or the replacement of a large old filling – Dr. Van Gurp may advise that a porcelain filling is the preferred treatment.
Also knowns as inlays and onlays, these durable and natural looking fillings are often used when the amount of lost tooth structure is more than a composite resin filling can safely replace but less than is needed with a dental crown.
While a traditional filling can sometimes weaken a tooth, a porcelain filling actually strengthens it.
Same Day Dental Fillings
Same Day Porcelain Fillings With CEREC Technology
Dr. Van Gurp is among a handful of dentists in Charlotte, NC utilizing CEREC, an advanced dental technology that allows him to create and place porcelain fillings in a single visit.
Each CEREC filling is custom designed and fabricated in-house. Dr. Van Gurp is able to provide you with a natural look and a natural feel that matches your existing teeth. No messy impressions, no delicate temporaries and no inconvenient second visits. Strength, beauty and lasting health – all in one office visit.
