Many people have asked me what is the best material to use to restore teeth. Mercury containing silver fillings are durable but for reasons of esthetics as well as potential toxicity are used by fewer and fewer dentists every year. Composite resins are the most popular and when properly placed they can last a long time but nothing beats the durably and longevity of gold. Here is a case that I recently completed.

This is a view (in a mirror) of the upper right arch. Three old style filling that had been there for over twenty years that the patient wanted replaced.

After carefully removing them, the preps look like this. An impression was taken and sent to a dental lab for fabrication.

The restorations, cast in 23-karat gold come back from the lab in a stone model representing the patient’s teeth.

This is what the restorations look like cemented in the patient’s mouth. The great thing about gold is that it tends to wear at the exact same rate as human enamel. Add the fact that it reacts with nothing makes it an ideal restorative material.

And lower.

Doing one quadrant a year this case took us four years to complete. As you may notice each restoration looks as good today as the day it was put in. Barring any unforeseen circumstances we expect these restorations to last the rest of her life. If you are interested in having the best and only doing things ONCE, you should ask your dentist about the gold option. When you look at the lifetime cost of restoring your teeth this is a very affordable solution.