Ceramic restorations

Ceramic restorations are porcelain dental materials used to restore your teeth where fillings may not be suitable. They both involve removing the existing decay with a drill and filling that empty space, but how that space is filled is where they primarily differ. With a filling, a composite resin material is used and it’s a much quicker process, involving only a single visit.

Ceramic fillings are incredibly strong, durable and look just like real teeth. They are specially designed and fabricated outside the mouth and then bonded (fitted) to the missing part of your tooth. They can be inlays or onlays.

Ceramic Inlays are placed within the tooth and they have an advantage over composite resin fillings in that they do not shrink/contract to the same degree after being placed. So, there is less chance of the restoration failing.

Ceramic Onlays are reserved for larger areas of tooth loss/decay where a filling or inlay will not suffice. The primary difference between an onlay and inlay is that an onlay will cover one cusp or more of the tooth, whereas an inlay only fills the area between the cusps.

Conversely, a crown will cover the entire biting surface of the tooth, as well as the tooth structure above the gum line.