Filling materials

A tooth filling can repair and restore defective parts of a tooth. There are different Filling materials which differ in various properties: for example how quickly they harden, how robust they are and how natural they look.

What are filling materials?

The best-known filling materials are amalgam, metal, ceramic and plastic. They differ primarily in their robustness, their durability, their naturalness and the time they need to harden.

If a tooth is damaged by caries, a fracture or other influences, it can often be repaired with a filling thanks to modern dentistry. With the help of dental fillings, for example, holes can be filled or broken tooth parts reconstructed or repaired.

A suitable filling material is required for this. There are many of them in dentistry today: the best known are amalgam, metal, ceramic and plastic (also called composite). These are also represented in different compositions.

Filling materials differ primarily in their robustness, their durability, their naturalness and the time they need to harden. A large number of materials now cure, for example, within a few seconds using a special UV light. Others dry naturally and harden within hours.

Shapes, types & types

Most of the filling materials for teeth today are provided with or contain special molecules. The molecules ensure that the material hardens when exposed to a special UV lamp. This eliminates long waiting times after filling a tooth.

However, there are still fillings that harden naturally - for example cement-like fillings, which are often used as temporary filling material. Examples of this are fillings made of glass ionomer cement or compomer (a cement-plastic mixture). These materials are usually not as robust or durable as a material designed for permanent use. As a result, however, it can also be ablated or removed more quickly and more gently on the tooth substance.

When it comes to fillings on the tooth, a distinction is now made between plastic and rigid fillings or inlays. Fillings made of dental materials such as plastic and amalgam are plastic fillings because they can be shaped. Inlays are fillings made of a metal or ceramic casting. The former are poured into the tooth directly in the oral cavity. Inlays are made outside the mouth and cast onto or into the tooth.

Structure & functionality

The various filling materials usually consist of compositions specially adapted to dentistry, which on the one hand aim to make the filling material as robust as possible, and ultimately it should preserve the tooth that was repaired with it for as long as possible. On the other hand, the material mixtures must be as harmless as possible for the body and the tooth. In addition, factors such as a natural appearance are taken into account today, even if this is more for aesthetic reasons.

When choosing a suitable tooth filling, however, it is still considered which filling material is best suited for the damage at hand, because damage cannot always be repaired with every material. Especially in the case of very large areas to be filled in, plastic fillings may not promise the desired hold. Therefore, large fillings in the molar area are usually recommended with amalgam. In other cases, on the other hand, an amalgam filling may be a poorer choice - mostly because it is unattractive. This can be the case in the anterior region, for example.

Depending on the type of filling, the tooth must be prepared for the filling. For this, damaged areas must be removed (using a drill). In the case of plastic fillings, the tooth must also be etched off so that a durable and secure connection can be created. Then the filling material is usually filled in and cured. Rigid inlays, on the other hand, are made and inserted outside the mouth.

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Medical & health benefits

Tooth fillings are used to fill and repair a tooth for as long as possible and as reliably as possible. What benefit they have from a health and medical point of view always depends on the composition of the filling material and the damage to the tooth. In general, they help the patient to be able to insert their teeth as strongly and painlessly as possible.

The composition of the filling materials is determined by the medical requirements on the tooth and accordingly serves different medical and / or aesthetic benefits.

For example, amalgam consists of a mixture of mercury and metals: zinc, silver, copper and tin. Because it also contains mercury, amalgam fillings are often controversial for health reasons. Plastic fillings, on the other hand, consist of plastic and numerous chemical substances. These substances serve to harden, bond and make the material flexible. Compared to amalgam, composite fillings are not only more natural, but often also have a longer shelf life. However, they do not always provide the desired hold over large areas - even if there are improved techniques today, such as layering the filling.

Cast metal fillings are made of materials such as titanium, ceramic, plastic and gold. Above all, a titanium and gold alloy impresses with its high abrasion resistance. In some cases, gold alloys can also be used to create so-called gold hammer fillings, in which the gold is hammered into the tooth in layers. Ceramic inlays today consist of a ceramic mixture and are probably the most natural way to fill teeth. Here, too, the abrasion resistance is very high. So far, however, ceramic as a filling material has not been easy to shape and insert directly into the tooth.