Any Raleigh dentist will tell you that fillings are some of the most common in-office. This restorative material involves getting rid of the decayed part of the tooth and reconstructing the missing piece and replacing it with a filling material, which is usually made of gold, porcelain or a mixture of silver, zinc and copper.
However, before your family dentist determines that you need it filled, he will use one of various methods to determine if in fact you do have a cavity. According to Colgate.com, the most common of these deciding procedures include:
1) Using an explorer
If your oral care professional notices some discolored spots on your pearly whites, he may tell you that he's going to use a tool known as an explorer to tell if these stains are indicative of decay. An explorer is a metal instrument with a sharp tip that used to test for cavities.
2) Testing the tooth with a dye
Over the years, cavity-detecting dyes have become more popular. This substance is rinsed over your pearly whites and comes off those that are healthy and adheres to the teeth that need a filling.
3) Taking an X-ray
X-rays are helpful because they allow your dentist in Raleigh to see beneath the surface of the tooth. Keep in mind, however, that these in-depth pictures are not accurate from time to time because they have a hard him picking up on tiny cavities on the surface of your chompers.
4) Using laser fluorescence cavity detection aids
These are small rods that take record the fluctuations caused by tooth decay.
