Have you got questions about dental fissure sealant?
The term may be unfamiliar but the good news is it's a simple preventative procedure that's performed to help protect teeth from decay.
What Is A Fissure Sealant?
Dental fissure sealants are a protective layer applied on the chewing teeth (the molars) to reduce tooth decay. Applying a sealant is quick and painless and can be done by your dentist in Balwyn.
The treatment forms a thin, tooth coloured protective layer on the biting surfaces of a tooth. It is usually done on the larger molar teeth at the back of the mouth. The treatment forms a “seal” on the tooth preventing any attack from the bacteria in plaque.
This is a great prevention treatment for dental decay. Despite being thin it is extremely strong and can last a while.
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How Can A Fissure Sealant Help?
This is a preventative treatment that is indicated in those patients that are diagnosed to have a higher susceptibility to dental decay. Commonly this treatment is carried out in children between the ages of 6 and 14. This is because these are the years when a child can be more susceptible to decay as continuously proven in multiple studies. This treatment is also proving to be very useful for adults too.
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Deep pits and grooves can be found on the chewing surfaces of the back teeth. Such pits and grooves are termed ‘fissures’ and are usually so narrow that toothbrush bristles and streams of water are not able to clean them effectively. These form a favourable environment for bacteria to flourish, often resulting in tooth decay.
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What can be done?
Fissure sealants can be applied to the teeth. Fissure sealants are special materials used by dentists to seal off pits and fissures from the oral environment. Sealing the tooth surface protects fissures from bacteria and fermentable foods like sugar and starches to prevent decay from starting deep within the fissures. Any tooth with pits and fissures can be treated, provided the surface to be filled is sound and has not been previously filled. The most commonly treated teeth are the molars and premolars.
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How are sealants applied?
Sealants are applied easily and painlessly. No drilling is required. The tooth is properly cleaned, treated, dried, and the sealant applied. It then hardens to form a protective coating over the tooth.
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How effective are sealants and how long can they last?
Many studies show sealants to be very effective in preventing decay in fissures. They do, however, require regular maintenance by your dentist in Kew. This can be performed with your six- monthly check-up. Recent studies show that a properly placed sealant will last as long as a typical amalgam filling. Even if a sealant is damaged or lost, it is easily repaired and replaced. Regular maintenance by your dentist in Hawthorn will help them last. This can be done with your six-monthly check-up.
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When should sealants be put on the teeth?
Sealants are most effective when applied after the eruption of the tooth. Early application ensures pits and fissures are sealed before the decay process begins.
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Our clinic is conveniently located close to Kew, Mont Albert, Surrey Hills, Hawthorn, Deepdene and Camberwell. Please feel free to contact our caring dentists on 03) 9817 7144 for any of your fissure sealant needs.