What You Should Know About Inlays and Onlays

Modern day dentistry has provided us with more effective and safer practices and technology. Exemplary of this are indirect fillings, otherwise known as inlays and onlays. Our Agoura Hills dentist may be able to create these using 4ED technology. Here is some basic information about these restorations and how they are made.

Fillings are used to replace parts of teeth that have deteriorated due to decay, otherwise known as a cavity. We now differentiate between fillings that are placed on the inside of the tooth (inlays), and ones placed on the cusp (onlays).

In the recent past, only direct fillings were performed, which means they were created in the tooth, and cured into place. Indirect fillings are made outside of the tooth, and then put into place. You may think that the former is more effective, but indirect fillings are actually much more effective.

4ED technology allows dentist to take pictures of the affected tooth, which are transformed into a 3D image and sent to a milling machine. This machine creates restorations precise to the map it is given, and fits the space in the tooth exactly. While direct fillings often need alterations afterward to better fit the tooth and bite, indirect fillings are often perfect. If you have a tooth that requires a filling, ask your Agoura Hills dentist if this option might be right for you.