Bad Dental Work? Defective Fillings Can Cause Serious Problems!
Decay and defective restorations
Can you tell if you have a bad filling?
The answer to this question is YES – usually you can! Patients should expect their dentist to provide the highest quality dental care. There should not be rough fillings, decay remaining below fillings – sealed in decay, or rough areas that are difficult to clean. These types of defects allow the accumulation of debris which limits the longevity of a restoration, and quite possibly the longevity of the tooth!
While patients aren’t expected to be able to read their own dental x-rays, I feel it may be helpful to show you some problems we sometimes see around defective dental work. The very bright or white areas on these dental x-rays are where silver fillings are present in teeth. Because the fillings are a dense metal, they will show up on a dental x-ray as bright white areas. See the same dental x-ray below that points out problems seen here.
What makes a filling defective? Roughness, ledges, improper shape, and/or anatomy that does not replicate a healthy tooth are all problems that can be caused AND prevented by your dentist. A dental x-ray will show overhangs, rough areas, decay, voids or holes below fillings where bacteria can accumulate.
Decay often begins around the edges of fillings or crowns where two materials come together – in this case, tooth enamel and metal. Bacteria seem to love to congregate around the edges of fillings or other restorations and this is where new decay will start. If fillings are rough or defective the problems is worse! Bacteria also like places that are rough where food collects and where it is difficult to clean. Because of this, all fillings should be smooth where they meet the tooth. This is also true for crowns. Areas that are rough will be harder to keep clean and will hold more debris creating a food storage area for the bacteria that cause new decay, periodontal disease or bone loss, and gum disease.
In the x-ray shown here, you can see bad dental work and other problems. Note fillings with overhangs or ledges of filling material that stick out beyond the tooth. There are rough areas that will hold debris. There are areas where new decay is starting below the existing filling. Decay will show up on an x-ray as a dark area below a filling or on the side of a tooth. Broken pieces of filling can become wedged between two teeth making flossing difficult or impossible and below this you will see areas of bone loss. This bone loss is the beginning of periodontal disease and it may be permanent.
What can be done?
Your dentist takes x-rays to evaluate areas like this and he or she will recommend treatment to remove and replace the defective restorations or fillings, treat the periodontal disease, and prescribe therapy to prevent further decay and bone loss. It is now common to be able to keep your teeth for a lifetime! Our office would be happy to answer your questions about issues like this.
We are located in Grand Junction, Colorado and believe that every person deserves the right to a comprehensive examination and treatment plan with options to restore health to their mouths. Our phone number is (970) 242-3635. Please visit us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/juliegillisddspc or call us if you have any questions or concerns.
This information shared with you by Julie Gillis, DDS PC. We feel that your dental health is the top priority, and if we can make your smile more attractive while improving your health that is wonderful! Dr. Gillis practices restorative and cosmetic dentistry including porcelain veneers, tooth whitening, implants, crowns, bridges and periodontal care. Our office website is www.juliegillisds.com. For further information, please contact us at (970) 242-3635. Tooth bleaching is one of the things we do that is actually fun!