Many patients have silver amalgam fillings in back teeth. Amalgam is a very strong durable material but obviously in no way mimics the natural colour of teeth. For this reason many patients choose to replace silver fillings with tooth coloured restorations or have tooth coloured restorations when they need a filling. In front teeth we always use tooth coloured materials and crowns can be made in tooth coloured materials. This page therefore largely deals with tooth coloured restorations for back teeth.
This is a white filling material which is placed in the surgery. It has the advantage of requiring only one appointment and great aesthetics can be achieved. However for larger restorations or where multiple restorations are required then inlays are a better choice.
Inlays are ceramic restorations or composite restorations which have been made in the laboratory. They are more suitable for large restorations or where multiple retsorations are produced. They do however require two visits and are a higher cost than the composite fillings.