Is your tooth strong enough to last?

The problem with large fillings
A tooth can look perfectly fine while having lost a significant amount of its original structure. Over the years, teeth may have been restored with increasingly large fillings. An old amalgam filling may have occupied a substantial portion of the tooth, or a large composite restoration may have replaced a significant amount of missing tooth structure.

The remaining tooth may still function perfectly well — until one day a piece chips, a crack develops or part of the tooth breaks.

The important question is not simply: "Can we fill this tooth?", but rather ...

"How can we restore this tooth while protecting the healthy tooth structure that remains?"
When a tooth is assessed before a major fracture occurs, there may be an opportunity to reinforce it with an indirect ceramic restoration rather than simply repairing the defect with another filling.

Common warning signs include:

• A very large old amalgam filling
• A large composite restoration
• A chipped cusp
• A cracked or fractured filling
• A tooth that has been repaired several times
• A large MOD restoration
• A weakened tooth with limited remaining structure
• Food repeatedly packing around a restoration
• A tooth where your dentist has already mentioned the possibility of a crown