Is A Tooth Bonding Procedure Worth It?

The teeth play an important role in our daily lives. They mostly help in tearing, biting, and chewing food, formation of speech, pronunciation of words, and give shape to the face. The frequent and daily use of the teeth makes them susceptible to damage. This damage might occur as a result of abnormal use, bad oral hygiene, bad habits, and accidents or injury. These might cause the teeth to chip, break, crack, and even decay.

Chipped, cracked, or broken teeth due to bad habits might be caused by biting hard on objects, clenching, and grinding of the teeth. Accidents and work/sports injuries can also cause the teeth to chip, crack or even break. Bad oral hygiene can cause the mouth to be infested with dental plaques and this causes tooth decay.

A dental plaque is a sticky, slimy film that covers the surface of the teeth. It is formed as a result of the mixture of bacteria in the mouth, saliva, and food remnants. Dental plaques produce acid that eats away at the tooth enamel, thereby causing tooth decay. The result of these defects has adverse effects on your smile and facial aesthetics. However, chipped, cracked, or broken teeth do not have to stay that way because there are various ways through which defective teeth can be repaired. One of the most effective ways of restoring chipped, cracked, broken, and even decayed teeth are through a dental bonding procedure.

Dental bonding is a cosmetic dental procedure in which a tooth-colored composite resin material is applied to the teeth for restoration and damage repair. It is a simple and inexpensive way of repairing chipped, cracked, and broken teeth. Dental bonding also helps to stop decay, close gaps, change the shape of the teeth, and serves as an alternative to other expensive cosmetic dental procedures.

The tooth-colored resin material used in a dental bonding procedure means a bonded tooth can be made to have the exact color with your natural teeth. Therefore, dental bonding can help change the length, size, shape, and even color of the tooth. It fixes a lot of defects in a single inexpensive procedure.

Dental Bonding Procedure

A dental bonding treatment is best carried out on teeth that have suffered minor injuries. Severely damaged or decayed teeth might not be fixed by bonding.

The first step involved in this procedure is choosing a composite resin material color that is very similar to the color of your natural teeth. Your dentist might use a dental chart in making sure the color matches your teeth’ color. After this, your tooth is then prepared to receive the bonding agent.

The surface of your tooth is now roughened to enable the bonding agent to stick well. A conditioning liquid that aids bonding is applied to the surface of the tooth, then, the composite resin is applied over the liquid. Your dentist then molds and shapes the teeth to the desired shape, length, and size. The composite resin material is then hardened using ultraviolet light. Other necessary adjustments can be made after the resin has been hardened.

Advantages Of Tooth Bonding

A dental bonding procedure is preferred over other cosmetic dental procedures for the following reasons:

• Dental bonding can solve a lot of dental defects in a single procedure. These defects can include chips, cracks, discoloration, gaps, etc.
• It is one of the cheapest cosmetic dental procedures available.
• It does not require a lot of adjustments to the teeth, unlike other procedures. This makes the procedure easily reversible.
• It is a simple and convenient procedure.
• Dental bonding does not require a lot of visits to a dental clinic.

These and many more are the benefits of dental bonding which make the procedure a famous choice in cosmetic dentistry.

Disadvantages Of Dental Bonding

All dental procedures, regardless of their numerous advantages, have their disadvantages. The disadvantages of a dental bonding procedure are as follows:

• The composite resin material used in tooth bonding is strong, however, it is not as durable as the tooth enamel. Therefore, bonded teeth can chip, crack, or break.
• Tooth bonding does not last as long as other cosmetic dental procedures.
• Bonded teeth are prone to stain because of the composite resin material.
• Composite resin can wear down and reveal an obvious difference between the bonded part and the remaining natural part of a tooth.