Fillings help to repair holes or erosion on your teeth. These are most often caused by tooth decay although can also be a result of sensitivity, over-brushing or even aesthetic reasons – for example, where a part of your tooth has chipped or broken. It used to be the case that fillings were always made from amalgam, which resulted in unsightly silver patches in the patient’s mouth; tooth coloured composite is now available as an alternative which is much more discreet.
Fillings often last several years, depending on a number of factors like diet, your oral hygiene routine and the size of the filling – smaller fillings tend to last longer.
Depending on your reasons for needing one, having a filling is not generally a painful procedure. We may need to remove any areas of decay from the tooth, but otherwise the procedure simply involves the application of the filling material to your tooth which is then set with an infrared lamp. You will need to monitor the types of food and drink you consume for a few hours after your appointment, but will not be in any pain.