What is Dental Bonding?

Bonding is a dental treatment in which dental resins are used to repair teeth that may be chipped or cracked, change the shape or size of teeth, fill in gaps between teeth and/or cover discolored teeth. There are many advantages to using this type of dental procedure to give a person a winning smile.

When dental bonding is used, the procedure usually can be completed in just one visit to the dentist, unless there are many teeth that will be involved in this procedure.

It all begins with a tooth-colored resin bond, usually made of a plastic dental material. The dentist will prepare the tooth or teeth that are to be fixed by lightly roughening the surface of the tooth and then applying a conditioning liquid that helps the bonding material stick to the tooth. The actual bonding material is applied to the tooth in layers. Each layer is then hardened by the use of a high-intensity light.

The hardening process takes just a few minutes. Layer by layer, the bonding material is applied to the tooth until it is at the right depth.

After the correct depth has been achieved and the bond resin has hardened, the dentist will then sculpt the area to the exact specifications. It is sort of like an artist creating a sculpture. There is definitely an artistic quality to the technique. At the very end of the procedure, the bond is polished to look exactly like a real tooth, or like the tooth it is repairing. Because the resin comes in many shades, the final layer can be matched perfectly to the patient’s tooth color.

Advantages to dental bonding are many. First, it is one of, if not the easiest procedure a dentist can do to repair a tooth or correct gaps and other problems. A typical visit for bonding on one tooth takes about an hour. No anesthesia is required. This procedure requires the least amount of tooth loss or damage to the enamel.

Teeth with dental bonds don’t require special care. Good oral hygiene is all that is needed to keep the bonds looking great. The bonds will last anywhere from four to 10 years, depending on various factors. It is important that the patient does not do things like chew their fingernails or the ends of things like pens to avoid chipping the bond.

Best of all, dental bonding can be inexpensive, especially compared to other procedures done to correct tooth problems. Dental bonding is one of the easiest ways to correct problems that may be wrong with a person’s teeth, and having a great smile is very important to a person’s self-esteem!