Dental Health Magazine Dental Health Magazine Issue 8 | Page 53

Issue #8, December 2017
The 1st molar
and 2nd molar
are both restored
using composite
materials.
The lifespan of a composite restoration may vary from 1 year to 20 years which depends on many factors, including the nature
and extent of the initial caries cavity, the treatment procedure, the restorative material and technique used, the operators’ skills,
and patient factors such as oral hygiene, the way you bite, caries risk, and adverse habits. Therefore, to make your investment
worthwhile, it only makes sense for you to take good care of your teeth by brushing with a soft bristle toothbrush, flossing as
often as possible and also revisit your dentist regularly so that we can detect any defect early on and repair it before it’s too
late. (Composites are repairable) Also, if you have many composite fillings in your front teeth, it is advisable to avoid too much
consumption of coffee and tea because composites stains faster than your natural teeth which will lead to colour difference.
While bleaching might be a good idea for staining, bleaching your teeth which contains several composite fillings will lead to
your teeth turning out to be whiter than the composite restorations, or the shade will come out different where the composite
was previously placed.
At the end of the day, it is up to you and your preference of this 2 main restorative materials. The price of amalgam restorations
in Malaysia ranges from RM50-200 while the price of composite fillings ranges from RM90-500;and it all depends on the
difficulty of the case and many factors. Amalgam needs a large enough cavity to hold it in place because it is secured by physical
retention while composite materials are held in p lace by micromechanical bonding. Your dentist will suggest which material to
use according to your clinical presentation and other factors.
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