Bonding

Dental bonding, also known as composite bonding is an excellent way to repair cracked, chipped and discoloured teeth. Dental bonding can also be used to close gaps and reshape misaligned teeth, providing you with a straighter, more uniform smile. It can be a good alternative to orthodontics if you only have one or two teeth that are very slightly out of alignment.

Bonding uses tooth coloured composite resin and is a very conservative cosmetic dental treatment. It involves minimum alterations to your original tooth structure, and is reversible if none of the tooth enamel is removed. The results are seen immediately and should last for several years.

Here at Werribee Dental Clinic we only use the most advanced composite resins and these come in a huge variety of shades and translucencies so our dentists can closely match your natural tooth colour. Often we will use several different shades to get the very best aesthetic results.

The Procedure 

• A local anaesthetic will be given to numb the tooth and the surrounding tissue. If we do not need to remove any of your original tooth enamel then you may not even require a local anaesthetic.
• The tooth will be isolated from the rest of your teeth using a ‘rubber dam’ which is a thin sheet of rubber placed over your mouth. It is used to keep the tooth dry as saliva can compromise the bond between the composite resin and your tooth.
• The tooth will be thoroughly cleaned. All decay, food debris or tartar will be removed.
• Next, your tooth is prepared using a phosphoric-acid-based gel; this roughens the surface of the tooth so there will be a stronger bond between your tooth and the composite resin. A bonding agent (glue) is applied to the roughened surface and set using a concentrated beam of ultraviolet light. The composite is then applied in layers and set at each stage using the ultraviolet light. The process continues until the desired shape is achieved.
• The last stage is to carefully shape and polish the restoration to achieve a natural lustre and finish.