In many cases, patients don’t realise that they need a filling until their dentist detects decay at their routine check-up. However, there are a few symptoms that could mean that you need a filling. These include:

• Sensitivity or pain when eating or drinking something sweet
  

• Sensitivity or pain when eating or drinking something hot or cold
  

• General toothache
  

• A dark spot on your tooth
  

If you experience any of these symptoms, you could have a cavity developing and you should arrange for a dental check-up as soon as is convenient. 

A filling is a very simple and straightforward dental treatment, and at Riverside Dental, our expert team performs countless fillings every single year. Once a cavity has been identified, you’ll be given local anaesthetic to numb the tooth and the area around it. This is usually injected into your gums and most patients don’t feel any discomfort while the anaesthetic is administered. It can take around five minutes for the anaesthetic to work.

Once you are suitably anaesthetised, your dentist will remove any decay from the tooth. This will probably involve drilling into the area using a handheld piece of equipment. The sound and pressure from the drilling can be quite intense, but you shouldn’t experience any pain. 

After all decayed material has been removed from the affected tooth, your chosen filling material will be placed into the hole that is left. Since it is soft, the filling material can be manipulated to fill the hole completely, sealing it against further bacteria.

In the past, the most common type used was silver amalgam. However, this is dark grey in colour and very obvious against the comparable whiteness of our teeth. Today, the majority of patients opt for a tooth-coloured filling since this offers them greater discretion and maintains the appearance of their smile. 

Fillings are a fairly long-lasting dental restoration. Silver amalgam and gold fillings tend to last longer than tooth-coloured alternatives. However, provided that you take good care of your teeth, there is no reason why your filling doesn’t last a decade or more. 

Fillings are very successful. However, if you choose a silver amalgam filling, your dentist will monitor their condition carefully over the following years. This is because silver amalgam fillings require more of the tooth to be removed in order to make space for the filling material. They are also more likely to crack or fracture in response to extreme temperature changes, like drinking a cup of hot tea or eating an ice cream. 

The cost of fillings at Riverside Dental start at £195. If you would like to spread* the cost of your treatment using one of our flexible payment plans**, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

*Spreading the cost only applies for £1500 and over.
**Term and conditions apply.