Fillings
Fillings are applied to small and developing cavities to restore your teeth back to health and halt serious decay in its tracks. They can restore decayed and damaged teeth and prevent further deterioration. Tooth coloured or white fillings can be used as an alternative to silver amalgam fillings to maintain a natural appearance in your teeth.
During your routine check-up with our Durham Smile Clinic dentist, we will use a small mirror to assess the surface of your teeth, looking for signs of decay or little cracks and fissures. They will let you know as soon as they see anything that might require treatment, and talk you through issue, the solutions and any wider guidance.
Fillings may be made from a number of different materials depending on the type of fitting your tooth requires. Indirect fillings will be crafted to fit your tooth in a dental laboratory before fitting, and because of their tailormade nature, they require a couple of visits to our Manchester practice. Direct fillings, on the other hand, can be applied in one sitting. White or tooth-coloured options prove to be the most popular of as they are the quickest and most natural-looking – with these, no one will be able to tell that they’re there.
Should you require a filling; your dentist will discuss all of the available options and advise on the most suitable choice for your teeth. The process is straightforward, and often only requiring one or two appointments at our local Durham practice. Once your dentist has assessed the area that requires treatment, they will clear out any decay before filling the clean cavity with a material of your choice.
Root Canal treatment
If you are experiencing severe tooth pain, this may be a sign that you require root canal treatment. You may also need root canal treatment if your tooth has become damaged or cracked, you have tooth decay, large fillings or have recently had a trauma to the tooth. These scenarios all leave your tooth open to infection. Root canal problems must be treated as soon as possible as leaving the infection untreated can cause a lot of pain and can be dangerous. Your Durham Smile Clinic dentist can treat your tooth without the need to remove it, leaving you pain-free and in good oral health.
Root canal treatment (or endodontics) is required when there is an infection deep within your tooth. The blood or nerve supply may be infected either due to an injury or a severe cavity. You may not experience any pain or discomfort during the early stages of an infection, however if your tooth changes colour and darkens, that is a sign that your tooth nerve is in danger of dying. If left untreated, this kind of infection can not only be very painful, but can lead to an abscess or even tooth loss.
The five signs of infection deep in your tooth include; serious toothache when eating, or when you put pressure on the tooth, as well as excessively sensitive teeth, a darkening of your tooth, tender or swollen gums or even a small bump on your gum close to a painful tooth. Root canal treatment removes all of the infection from the tooth, before sealing the tooth to protect the damaged nerve and restore you back to good oral health. Endodontic treatment is always carried out by a specialist clinician at our practice in Durham and an anaesthetic is used to keep you comfortable through the process.
At your first appointment with our Durham practice, we will take an x ray to assess the status of the infection. Then a local anaesthesia is administered to the area and a piece of rubber material called a ‘rubber dam’ is placed around the tooth the keep it dry and accessible throughout the procedure. Once you are fully anaesthetised, your dentist will use specially designed tools to remove the infected tissue. Once it is clear, a rubber compound is used to fill the tooth where the
Contact us
If you have any questions about the treatments we offer, our location or general questions about your treatment, you can contact us in a number of ways.