Biomimetic inlays and overlays
Stronger than a filling, less destructive than a crown.
Do you have:
- A cracked tooth?
- A root canal filled tooth requiring protection from a fracture?
- A history of broken fillings?
- Worn teeth?
Or are you just interested in the gold standard of dentistry for all your restorative needs? Biomimetic inlays and overlays could be the solution for you.
An inlay is made to fit the size and shape of a tooth cavity – one single solid piece of porcelain, cemented into place.
An inlay is used when a cavity is too large for a traditional composite filling, or to achieve a permanent filling. Fillings last a long time but are generally not permanent.
If you are considering mercury amalgam filling removals with Bangalow Holistic Dentist, you may wish to replace them with inlays. Or you may simply wish to upgrade your existing composite (white) fillings.
An overlay is a single, solid piece of porcelain, which covers the whole top of a tooth like a little cover. They are very strong, but unlike full crowns which require the tooth to be cut back, an overlay conserves tooth structure.
Overlays are used for badly worn teeth, unsightly teeth, failed fillings, and for the replacement of very large amalgam fillings. Overlays are the treatment of choice when treating teeth with vertical fractures – not crowns.
- Provide a permanent seal off the cavity to prevent further decay.
- Permanent, natural looking fillings and restorations
- Minimally invasive and tooth conserving
- Don’t stain
- Fracture resistant
- Less costly than crowns
Porcelain inlays and overlays are an integral part of biomimetic dentistry.
Biomimetic dentistry is used to treat weak, fractured, or decayed teeth. It’s a special method of restoring and preserving teeth, one which keeps them strong. It also seals them against the harmful bacteria which cause decay. We utilise advanced bonding techniques, requiring additional dental training, experience and skill.
The word ‘biomimetic’ means to mimic nature in terms of structure, function and aesthetics. When we restore teeth using biomimetic principles, the procedures used are minimally invasive and are performed to restore the tooth in a way that allows it to behave, just as a natural tooth would.
Along with biomimetic inlays and overlays, we can also offer biomimetic bonded bridges, in certain circumstances. Unlike conventional bridges, no valuable tooth structure is removed from the two teeth which support the bridge. It is also less costly.
Biomimetic dentistry is tooth conserving, repairable, even reversible in some cases, and can be easy on the pocket too.