Most of us know what cavities are.
Most of us know that eating lots of sugar is not good for our teeth. Cavities also known as tooth decay are holes or structural damage that occurs when germs (bacteria, plaque) in your mouth make acids that eat away at the tooth. Cavities generally start in the enamel, but soon can invade the deeper layers of the tooth and turn our tooth into mush!
Bacteria (germs) living in our mouths like to eat the same things we do!
Bacterial germs that live in our mouth (the soft sticky “plaque” that your tooth brush and floss missed) have waste products like we do! The bacteria uses carbohydrates and sugar to create these waste products or “acid” which can eat away at tooth enamel. Food caught in between our teeth or where the tooth is not cleaned well feeds the bacteria daily.
Here is an example of a patient that wasn’t even aware they had cavities!
Actual cavities being filled by Sedona AZ dentist Chris Marsh
Dental dam before dental filling. The sooner a cavity is treated, the smaller any filling will be.
Deep tooth decay
The sooner a cavity is filled the less cost of a filling. This patient let this cavity that did not “hurt” go too long. This tooth may end up needing a crown or a root canal!
Deep tooth cavity
Resin composite filling completed
Here are some signs that you may have cavities:
Cavities usually don’t hurt until they grow to be very large!
Tooth decay causes damage to the tooth. You may be wondering how much it will cost to fill a cavity. You may not be able to see or feel that you have a cavity, The EARLIER that a tooth cavity gets treated the LESS IT WILL COST!
Some dentists still use silver- mercury amalgam, 140-year-old obsolete dental technology to fill cavities. Sedona Arizona dentist Chris Marsh has not used it in over 28 years. Repairing your decay may be as simple as a tooth colored filling, a tooth colored inlay or onlay, or even a crown for a tooth with a history of deep fillings and fractures. Dr. Marsh treats dental decay and cavities on patients that live in the Village of Oak Creek, Sedona, Cottonwood, and Cornville. Call 928-325-3010 for an evaluation today.
