Replacing your Mercury Fillings

“From Amalgam to Porcelain or Plastic”

We've all seen them. Some of us still have them. Ugly, black, amalgam (mercury) tooth fillings. Given the advances in dentistry and the use of porcelain materials, there is no longer any reason to use mercury alloy fillings.

If you still have amalgam fillings, consider the following:

•  Amalgam fillings do not “bond” to the tooth. In order to hold the filling in place, the cavity must be prepared with 'undercuts'. These undercuts seriously weaken the tooth, and consequently the tooth fractures.

•  Some amalgam fillings will corrode with time. When corrosion occurs they swell or expand. And as expansion occurs, pressure is exerted on the tooth and cracks will begin to form.

•  Corrosion occurs when saliva leaks around the filling. The bacteria in saliva starts cavities under the mercury filling.

•  If not repaired immediately, teeth can break, become infected or even worse, the entire tooth will be lost.

White filling materials (both porcelain and plastic) have superior bonding qualities and therefore do not require a cavity with an undercut. They actually help strengthen the tooth structure when used in appropriate situations.