Restorative Dentistry

If your child needs restorative treatment in the form of a filling or crown, Dr. Phu Le and our team will create a custom treatment plan for your child and review all options with you before treatment begins. We believe a conservative approach to children’s dentistry is usually the best course of action.

Fillings

Fillings are placed in the tooth following decay removal to preserve natural tooth structure. Nowadays most fillings are made of a composite resin that is matched to your child’s natural tooth color. In some rare instances amalgam (silver) fillings may be used.

There are two basic kinds of fillings used to restore teeth after decay is removed: amalgams, composites.

Amalgams

Most dental amalgams are silver in color and are made from a mixture of mercury and an alloy of silver, tin, and copper. Mercury makes up about 45-50 percent of the compound. Mercury is used to bind the metals together and to provide a strong, hard durable filling. Mercury has been found to be the only element that will bind these metals together in the best possible way to manipulate the material into a tooth cavity.

Composite resin

Advances in modern dental materials and techniques increasingly offer new ways to create more pleasing, natural-looking smiles. Researchers are continuing their decades-long work developing aesthetic materials, such as ceramic and plastic compounds that mimic the appearance of natural teeth. As a result, dentists and patients today have several choices when it comes to selecting materials used to repair missing, worn, damaged or decayed teeth.

Composite resins, or white fillings, are more expensive. While aesthetically appealing, they require a longer time to place and are not as durable as silver amalgam.

Composite resins are tooth-colored, plastic materials (made of glass and resin) that are used both as fillings and to repair defects in the teeth. Because they are tooth-colored, it is difficult to distinguish them from natural teeth. Composites are often used on the front teeth where a natural appearance is important. They can be used on the back teeth as well depending on the location and extent of the tooth decay.

Composite fillings are a mixture of acrylic resin and finely ground glasslike particles that produce a tooth-colored restoration. Composite fillings provide good durability and resistance to fracture in small-to-mid-size restorations that need to withstand moderate chewing pressure. Less tooth structure is removed when the dentist prepares the tooth, and this may result in a smaller filling than that of an amalgam. Composites can also be "bonded" or adhesively held in a cavity, often allowing the dentist to make a more conservative repair to the tooth. In teeth where chewing loads are high, composite fillings are less resistant to wear than silver amalgams.

WHY DOES MY CHILD NEED A CROWN?

Sometimes an area of decay is too large for a filling or the decay has compromised the whole side of a tooth, so there is not enough tooth structure to support a filling. If your child has an accident that results in a heavily damaged tooth or if your child is at high risk for developing cavities, Dr. Phu Le may decide it’s best to preserve the entire remaining structure.

Crowns can be made of many different materials depending on where in your child’s mouth they are to be used. Stainless steel, resin, and zirconia (Tooth-colored) are all durable choices. We offer several types of crowns depending on the location of the cavity. 

If you are concerned that your child needs a crown, Dr. Phu Le and our team are happy to answer all your questions.