Cracked tooth

Posted in: Blog by Dr Kundel on June 8, 2011

Oftentimes when a large “silver” filling is removed from a tooth, your dentist may tell you that there are cracks that go through the tooth. That most likely is true. Metal when exposed to water corrodes. When it corrodes it expands. So a “silver” filling that is in constant contact with saliva will overtime corrode and expand. That creates a high likelihood of either breaking a tooth or at least creating cracks in the tooth. So a decision has to be made on what to do next with this tooth. In this practice, 99% of the time a tooth like that will be filled with a plastic filling and left alone. A patient is informed that the tooth does have cracks and what will happen to it long term nobody knows. However, because the tooth does have a questionable prognosis it would be prudent not to invest a lot of money on it but rather restore it conservatively. The reason this tooth would have a questionable prognosis is because it has been restored (re – drilled) several times. Anytime a tooth is touched there is a possibility that the nerve will act up and the tooth may die. If this occurs the only options left for the patient to decide is if they want a Root Canal or Extraction. In our practice, we educate, but always let the patient decide what they feel is best for them. We have a no pressure philosophy.

A word about filling materials. Plastic filling is called a composite. It is composed of plastic with tiny glass particles imbedded in it. A “silver” filing is composed of five metals. Fifty percent of that is mercury. We feel a composite filling is the best and least toxic material available today.

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