Porcelain White Fillings

Fillings are used to fill small holes, usually areas of decay, in your teeth. As a metal-free practice we use porcelain fillings for the most beautiful and healthy result. We can place new fillings, or replace your old fillings, with porcelain. Replacing old fillings not only increases the beauty of your smile, it can protect your teeth, preventing future damage.

Ivette - Actual Patient

How Porcelain Fillings Work

First, we clean out any decay present in your tooth. We fill the hole with a porcelain paste that is perfectly color matched to your tooth. The paste is hardened and polished to perfectly match the shape of your tooth. It is seamless, so it will not be visible and you will not be able to feel it.

Beauty

Older materials create a visible filling. Silver amalgam fillings start out bright and shiny, but tarnish over time and can even stain your tooth. Older tooth-colored materials can become stained, and often have a dead, flat look.

Your porcelain fillings will be perfectly matched to the color of your natural tooth and will react with light in the same way as your tooth enamel, so they look real.

Comfort

Metal fillings conduct heat and cold and can make your teeth very sensitive. Porcelain will not have this effect, so you can eat and drink hot and cold foods and beverages in comfort.

Healthier teeth

Metal fillings can damage your teeth. They expand and contract when exposed to heat and cold, and this can cause fractures in your tooth. Imperceptible fractures can cause severe dental pain when you chew because the pressure causes movement in your tooth. It can slowly lead to damage inside of your tooth. When your filling contracts, it can leave a tiny gap that allows food particles into your tooth causing decay.

Porcelain is strong and stable. It will not weaken or damage your teeth and can even make them stronger. The hole will be sealed at all times, preventing further decay.

Replacing old fillings

Replacing old fillings with porcelain will restore the beauty of your smile, and it can relieve the dental pain your old fillings are causing. It also gives us a chance to detect any decay that may be present beneath an old, failing filling, and stop it while your tooth can still be saved.

Filling replacement can be a stand alone procedure, and it is a basic part of a Smile Makeover. Many people have their old metal fillings replaced for health reasons as well as cosmetics, due to the concerns of mercury leaching from the fillings into the body.

For more information, see Questions about Natural-Looking Fillings.