Natural White Fillings

Natural, tooth-colored, or white fillings are cosmetic dentistry restorations that are used to fill cavities or chips in your teeth caused by decay, grinding or injury. White fillings allow The Smile Centre doctors to fill your cavities without using any metal, providing you with a smile you can be proud of.

There are many different advantages to white fillings over silver-mercury metal fillings (Civil War technology). White fillings can be colored to match the appearance of the rest of your tooth, they require less natural tooth to be removed in order to be placed, and bond directly to the tooth tissue, therefore strengthening a weakened tooth and sealing the gap between the tooth and the white filling.  Metal fillings do not bond to the tooth tissue, and therefore, leave a gap at the margin between the tooth and the metal filling which bacteria can travel back into and cause recurrent decay.

White fillings are created out of a white composite resin that is bonded to the tooth with a special adhesive and a bright curing light. Our Smile Centre doctors choose the resin so that it perfectly matches the shade of your natural tooth.

During the white filling appointment, your dentist will examine your teeth and determine where your cavities are and where you will need the white fillings. White fillings are frequently used to replace older, metal amalgam fillings, which along with the forces of chewing can cause fractures in your teeth.  Thus, white composite fillings restore the beauty, health and original strength of the tooth.

After your dentist has determined where you need fillings, we will prepare the teeth by removing all the decayed tooth structure and/or the old metal fillings you are replacing. After the teeth have been prepared, your doctor will place the white filling material in the cavity or chipped area.

In order to make sure the white filling completely fills the cavity it is applied in layers. After a layer is added, your doctor uses a high-frequency curing light to bond the material to your tooth and harden the resin.

Once the cavity is filled, your doctor will carefully shape and polish the white filling so that it seamlessly integrates with the rest of your teeth and smile.

If you are interested in filling your cavities or replacing old silver-mercury amalgam fillings with new white, natural fillings, contact The Sarasota, Bradenton and Venice area dentists at The Smile Centre to schedule your free initial consultation.