Today fillings are the most common and affordable dental restorative procedure for both children and adults. They’re used to restore the function and integrity of missing tooth structure commonly caused by tooth decay by placing a filling we reduce the number of bacteria in a patient’s mouth extend the life of the tooth and delay the need for additional dental work indefinitely.

Usually, the patient starts experiencing some slight discomfort in their lower left first molar or as dental

professionals might say tooth 19. So before surgeons begin, they need to get some x-rays taken of patient’s teeth x-rays or radiographs are essential. Low-cost diagnostic tools used to examine a tooth’s roots check the health of the bone surrounding the tooth. So they observe the status of developing teeth and find abnormalities such as cavities.

Dr Jyotsna Anjankar is an experienced dentist in Andheri known for her expertise and knowledge in this field and has performed more than 3000 dental treatments and surgeries. She is the founder of Everest Dental Solutions, where she heads the department of Orthodontics as well as Dental Procedure. Many of her satisfied patients consider her to be the best dentist in Mumbai. So she started below the procedure and Recovery for a composite dental filling.

Now Let’s See What She Has Stated And Explained About This Procedure:

First, insert a positioner into the patient’s mouth then next position the x-ray cylinder where indicated. With the x-ray cylinder in place, we need to get behind our radiation barrier to reduce the amount of radiation we’re being exposed to and take the picture. You don’t have to worry much as the lead apron will protect the patient from any unnecessary radiation exposure.

Now let’s move on with all of the x-rays completed it’s time to look for potential issues when examining dental x-rays for cavities look for hints of changes in the density of tooth enamel or dentin these locations will appear as darkened areas on an x-ray. It is because the decayed portion of the tooth is less intact and the x-rays can penetrate that portion of the tooth.

Suppose you identify cavity on the x-ray then that need to get taken care of as soon as possible. Now that you’ve identified the pit, we need to apply a topical numbing gel to the anaesthetic injection site to help reduce any discomfort the needle may cause. Next, we can administer the local anaesthetic the patient will at most feel a slight pinch afterwards, the area will become numb for hours even though the procedure will only last a few minutes. Take the syringe and inject the local anaesthetic into the patient’s gums just below the tooth we’ll be working on, and now we’ll give our patient a few minutes to become completely numb.

Now that the patient’s mouth is numb, we can move on to removing the decay to begin we’ll need to isolate the tooth using a cotton roll this will give us some space to work. Dentists typically remove tooth decay with a burr inserted into a handpiece; this is what most people refer to as the drill. So we prepare the area by using the burr to remove all of the decay from patients tooth carefully.

Now, after the removal of decay, we need to figure out which type of filling patient wants, i.e. amalgam or composite. Both have their advantages and disadvantages.

Amalgam fillings are more durable than composite, but they don’t have a tooth-coloured appearance like composite fillings they also often require a larger portion of the tooth to be prepared to retain the filling. Composite fillings are much more aesthetically pleasing and require less drilling than amalgam, but they can be a bit more expensive.

For a composite filling, we need to apply a self-etching dental adhesive to the prepared area of the tooth. It creates a rough surface that helps the filling bond to the tooth. Now we have to dry the site using the air syringe. Next, we need to apply the self-etching dental adhesive to the prepared area of the tooth one more time using the curing light to harden the self-etching sealant.

After this we need to get a filling in there, so we will take the composite filling syringe and place it into the prepared portion of the tooth and then pack the composite into the prepared area of the tooth using a condenser. Next, we will need to smooth the filling using an instrument called a burnisher. We place the curing light over the tooth and activate it to harden the material polish the filling using the polishing instrument. At this point, the dentist checks the patient’s bite to ensure that everything was normal, and the patient doesn’t experience any discomfort.

Recovery Process:

After the procedure, our patient may experience some sensitivity. Still, it should subside within one to two weeks if it doesn’t, they’ll need to contact their local dentist office. There is also the possibility that the patient’s bite may feel a little off since being numb can alter their ability to bite typically. Once the patient regains feeling in their mouth, they should return for an adjustment if it feels like their bite is not normal.

An effort to prevent future cavities the patient will not only need to regularly floss and brush their teeth, but they’ll need to ensure that they return to the dentist to have their teeth cleaned at least once every six months. It is also recommended that the patient should avoid smoking since it significantly contributes to the development of tooth decay.