Fillings (Restorations)

If your child has been diagnosed with having cavities, depending on the severity of the decay and your child’s stage of dental development, different treatment options will be presented.

Primary teeth are not as strong as permanent teeth. Therefore, cavities in primary teeth can progress very quickly if not addressed early.

Fillings are also known as restorations because they restore your child’s teeth to regular function and esthetics.

Restorative options:

1. Composites
2. Amalgams
3. Strip Crowns
4. Stainless Steel Crowns
5. Pulpotomy and Root Canal Therapy

Composite (resin) fillings
These are white “plastic” fillings that are esthetic and durable. These fillings are technique sensitive and require adequate moisture control. Most cavities can be restored with composite fillings

Amalgam (silver) fillings
This is an economical treatment option but it is not as esthetic as other options. Amalgam fillings are not as technique sensitive and may be recommended in cases where moisture control cannot be attained.

There has been some public concern about the health risks of amalgam fillings due to the mercury content however has been no scientific evidence to support these concerns.

Stainless steel crown

Stainless steel crowns are recommended for:

1. severely broken down and/or decayed molar teeth
2. molar teeth that require pulpal treatment
3. bite problems

In these cases, a conventional filling will not last until the tooth exfoliates naturally and the treatment of choice is a stainless steel crown.

Studies have shown that 70-75% of large mutisurface silver amalgam fillings placed at ages 2-5 will need replacement before the age of 8. Only 11-12.8% of stainless steel crowns will need further treatment. This is usually due to the child biting through the crown and not due to a loss of the crown.
                                                                                                                                                        
Resin (or composite) fillings placed over teeth that have had pulpal treatment will often fail due to leakage and may cause dental abscesses. Stainless steel crowns protect and strengthen pulpally treated teeth.

What does a crown look like?

The crown is a tooth shaped silver covering or cap, which protects the tooth. It is cemented in place, and is meant to be there until the baby tooth comes out.

We also offer white facing stainless steel crowns. Since this is a cosmetic procedure, the fee for “white crowns” is higher than “silver crowns”. This may not be fully covered by your dental insurance. A complication of the white crowns is that some of the white facing can sheer off to reveal the silver undersurface. This cannot be repaired and if desired, a new crown will have to be placed for an additional fee. Please feel free to ask the dentist if your child is a candidate for white crowns.

Foods to avoid:

Sticky candy such as jelly beans, jujubes, caramels, licorice, gummi candy, fruit roll-ups and especially bubble gum  can and will pull the crown off. Sticky candy are some of the worst culprits for causing cavities.

Do not allow your child to have this type of candy or gum for the lifetime of the crown.

Sugarless gum is not as sticky and also acts to prevent cavities. This can be given as a treat if necessary.

What to do if the crown falls out:

Please save it and call out office immediately for an appointment to recement it. If there is a lengthy delay in recementing the crown, there may be some shifting of adjacent teeth and the affected tooth may need to reprepped and a new crown fabricated.