A visit to the dentist is often a stress that you want to avoid. Modern medicine is ready to provide a method of dental treatment with a guarantee of about 10 years. Ceramic fillings and inlays allow you to forget about a return visit for a long time, which makes this method as popular as possible.
What is a filling and why is it needed?
Practically everyone was in the dentist's chair - someone for preventive examination, someone for treatment. The process of installing a filling is no longer surprising, it is considered the most effective and affordable way to save a tooth.
A filling is used in dentistry in the following cases:
- Caries treatment.
- Clogged root canal or canals.
- Troubleshooting.
- Aesthetic restoration of the appearance of the dentition.
In each of these cases, the doctor may use different materials. The patient is not always interested in what kind of filling he is installing. Only the question of the final quality of the procedure comes to the fore.
The highest qualityIn modern dentistry, ceramics is considered a material. Ceramic fillings have gained unprecedented popularity. However, this material also requires detailed consideration.
Benefits of ceramic filling
At its core, ceramic is a type of denture that is made in a dental laboratory. Such a filling does not have the properties of other dental materials (shrinkage, brittleness, staining, etc.), which allows it to be more durable.
Main advantages of ceramic filling:
- Suitable for restoring a tooth with a high degree of decay.
- Selection of a material that does not differ in color from a natural tooth. The light reflection of a real tooth is simulated.
- Fully follows the shape of the tooth.
- The material is resistant to food dyes, acidic environment and various bacteria, microbes.
- The average period of high-quality use of such a filling is about 10 years, which can be called a breakthrough for dentistry.
With the use of modern technology, it becomes possible to get rid of the old generation of dental prosthetics. The use of ceramics allows you to recreate a he althy smile, indistinguishable from a natural one.
Disadvantages of ceramic filling
Despite all the advantages of a ceramic tooth filling, there are also disadvantages to this material. It is important to consider them in advance in order to be confident in the upcoming treatment in the dental chair.
Disadvantages of ceramic filling:
- Cost of the procedure. Despite the prevalence of this method of prosthetics in modern dentistry, the price of such a service is quite high. Not everyone can afford the installation of ceramic fillings, light composites and dental cement compositions several times cheaper.
- Duration of the procedure. If you need an urgent restoration of the tooth, the time frame is limited, then the installation of a ceramic filling will not work. Such a procedure is carried out in several stages, the treatment process has an individual character, which significantly increases the treatment time.
If the cost of the procedure does not scare the patient, and there are no time limits either, then it is best to agree to the installation of a ceramic filling. This will allow you to forget about re-restoration for a long time.
Inlay or filling?
Often, ceramic onlays are used instead of fillings in the treatment. The question arises: what is the main difference between the tab and the seal. A filling allows you to restore an almost completely destroyed tooth, this approach is used instead of crowns and other prosthetic methods.
Ceramic overlay on the tooth instead of a filling allows you to restore a tooth that is destroyed by a third or less. Such overlays are made according to individual sizes and color parameters of the patient, which are determined during a visit to the dentist. They are made in the laboratory and only after that they are installed in the oral cavity.
In aestheticrestorations, especially the front teeth, which make a person’s smile unforgettable, use a special type of ceramic overlays - veneers. Often, a "Hollywood smile" is achieved by installing ceramic veneers, but it is important to remember that the manufacturing and installation process will take a long time.
It is difficult to determine the need for restoration on your own, only a visit to the dentist will allow the patient to make the right decision. Ceramic inlays instead of fillings from other dental materials are a common way to treat a tooth. It allows you to significantly extend his life in the oral cavity.
Technology for the manufacture and installation of seals and inlays
Ceramic inlays and fillings are popular, but they require certain conditions and skills to fit properly.
The process of manufacturing dental ceramics is divided into several stages:
- Complete sanitation of the oral cavity, cleansing of carious lesions. The surface of the tooth is completely prepared for the inlay of a certain shape.
- An impression of the tooth or teeth is made and sent to a dental laboratory for a plaster cast.
- The resulting tooth model is scanned, the data is loaded into a special computer. After that, the necessary form for the ceramic coating is made. This process is carried out automatically on a special milling machine, without human intervention.
- The resulting workpiece is fired and porcelain coated.
Onlyafter passing through all the stages, the workpiece goes to the doctor, who will install it in the patient's oral cavity.
The installation process also takes a considerable amount of time, as the tooth surface must be prepared in a special way. Installation steps for a ceramic inlay (filling):
- The top layer of enamel is ground off the damaged tooth. When installing veneers on a whole row of teeth, the enamel is removed from the entire row.
- A special adhesive solution is applied to the ceramic workpiece, with which it is fixed on the prepared tooth surface.
- The dentist processes the installed workpiece, adjusting it to the shape of a natural tooth, polishing.
Medical practice shows that aesthetic restoration with veneers is the most common way to maintain a he althy smile.
Caring for ceramic fillings and onlays
As noted above, ceramic fillings and inlays are resistant to various external influences, from which conventional materials lose their strength and appearance.
However, experts advise to follow a number of simple rules that will extend the life of dental ceramics:
- In the first time after the installation of the filling, limit the use of too hot or, on the contrary, too cold food (drinks). If the pulp is not removed from the tooth, it will cause pain.
- Avoid getting solid food on the healed tooth. Such a rule isobserve the first time after treatment.
- Even in the dentist's chair, you need to make sure that there is no discomfort when closing the jaw. The ceramic coating must be perfectly adjusted to the patient's bite, so as not to subsequently damage the enamel of he althy teeth.
- Use dental floss during oral hygiene, not just a toothbrush.
- Avoid alcohol-based mouthwashes. Such products may adversely affect the quality of the adhesive that was used to secure the ceramic inlay.
- Do not overexpose the restored tooth.
In simple terms, careful attitude to the he alth of the oral cavity and tooth surface will maximize the life of ceramic fillings, inlays, veneers.
Patient testimonials
Patients who have already gone through the ceramic filling procedure note its high quality and the absence of external differences from natural teeth. It is noted that a similar procedure is performed if the tooth is badly damaged and other methods will not work. This approach is due to the price of the ceramic coating, however, according to the individual desire, the ceramic inlay can be installed in any case.
