Hello,
I have 6 teeth fillings made of amalgam (poisonous mercury mixed with silver). I need to replace them with the safer composite material. Does anyone know which material I should choose, and how I can find an honest and competent dentist that can safely remove the amalgam and put in the composite? LEF advisor told me that LEF does not have any info. on this, and that she speculates that LEF will never research this area and disseminate the findings to its members. So, I found the following info. so far: http://www.toxicteeth.org/index.cfm and http://www.iaomt.org/index.asp I would appreciate any more input.
Thanks.
What has prompted you to "need" to have the fillings replaced? Are they failing? Did someone recommend that you replace them? Are you concerned that they are causing or may cause a physiologic problem for you? Are you dissatisfied with the way they look?
Of the above there are a few reasons I would support replacing the fillings. However you should keep in mind that amalgam tends to stain the tooth surface next to it and removing old amalgams will necessitate the removal of more tooth structure which can cause you to need larger restorations such as onlays or crowns rather than just fillings or inlays.
Your options for restoring a tooth are composite resin, glass ionomer, porcelain, gold, or porcelain fused to metal. The State Dental Board in California puts out a
fact sheet on dental fillings that all patients are given that lays out the basics.
When it comes to picking a dentist you need to know what is important to you. Do you want a dentist who updates to the latest technology and is constantly adding the latest methods to his/her practice? If so, look for one that has the
diagnodent laser for detecting dental caries and the
VELscope or
Vizilite oral cancer screening systems. Obviously fancy technology isn't the measure of a good dentist. Probably the best way to find a good dentist is the same as finding a good mechanic: ask your friends who they've had positive experiences with.
