Cavity Fillings

Painlessly Treat Your Cavities in Moreno Valley, CA

Cavity Fillings, Moreno Valley, California

When you have a toothache, there’s no time to waste. It can be the sign of a dental cavity in desperate need of treatment! What is a cavity? A cavity is a hole in your tooth caused by bacteria and dental decay. Left unchecked, the decay can wreak havoc on your tooth and even lead to the death of your tooth. At the first sign of your developing cavity, our Moreno Valley dentists stop at nothing to give you the quick-responding dental care you need. Tooth decay symptoms include: discolored white, brown, or black spots on your tooth, toothaches - can be constant or come and go, visible holes in your tooth, sensitivity to temperature or sweets, pain when chewing.

When treating your cavity, our office always takes your aesthetic concerns into account. You don’t have to worry about the metal look of amalgam fillings with us. Once we painlessly remove the damaged portions of your tooth, we can restore the natural, healthy look of your smile with composite resin fillings. Our cosmetic dentists shade match the color of your filling to ensure it blends seamlessly with the rest of your tooth. Say goodbye to your toothache for good! Call our office at (951) 488-8688 to schedule a tooth decay consultation with our dental team today.

Tooth Decay Stages

Early detection of your tooth infection ensures that our
expert dentists can give you fast-responding treatment

Stage 1: White Spots

With poor oral hygiene habits, plaque and bacteria begin to accumulate on your teeth. Chalky white spots appear as your teeth lose important minerals keeping them strong. This demineralization can be reversed, however, with proper brushing and flossing techniques as well as topical treatments like fluoride toothpaste.

Stage 2: Enamel Decay

Without minerals keeping it strong, the enamel of your tooth will begin to be eaten away by the plaque and bacteria. Remineralization is no longer possible, and a lesion will form within the tooth. If treated quickly enough, the lesion can be cleared before a cavity can form and require a dental filling.

Stage 3: Dentin Decay

When the tooth decay eats through the enamel and reaches the dentin layer, it creates a cavity, or pit, in the tooth. At this stage, the cavity must be treated with either a filling or dental crown. Fast detection and treatment is essential because dentin is softer than enamel, and the tooth infection will make its way through this layer and progress to the next stage quickly.

Stage 4: Pulp Involvement

Once the decay breaks through the tooth's dentin layer, it begins to attack the sensitive inner dental pulp. Dental pulp contains the blood vessels and nerves keeping your tooth alive, and damaging them can be extremely painful. The infection will continue to work its way down to the root of the tooth, and a root canal will be needed to fully remove the damaged tissue.

Stage 5: Abscess Formation

After the decay reaches the end of the tooth, it begins to infect the surrounding gum and form a pus-filled pocket called a tooth abscess. Abscesses attack the nearby soft tissue and bone even as the bacteria in the tooth continues to irreparably destroy the rest of your dental pulp.

What To Avoid To Prevent Cavities

Our dentists recommend that you avoid these foods as often as you can
to keep your smile free of cavity-causing bacteria.

Great dental hygiene habits like brushing and flossing your teeth and attending regular dental cleanings are great, but maintaining a healthy diet can do a lot to save your teeth, too. Foods and drinks you should avoid include: candies and sweets, starchy foods like potato chips and bread, sodas and other carbonated drinks, alcohol, citrus fruits like: lemons,

oranges, and limes, dried fruits, coffee and tea, and sports drinks. You should also do your best to stay away from foods that dry out your mouth. Saliva is important to breaking down foods and bacteria that can cause cavities. Therefore, it’s important that if you have any of these foods and drinks, you should try to drink as much water as you can afterward to rinse your mouth clean.

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We Take Care Of You Every Step Of The Way

Our dentists commit themselves fully to your smile, giving you the best dental experience possible every time

When you experience cavity pain, we make sure that you have nothing to worry about. At Gold Coast Dental Moreno Valley, our attentive dentists are dedicated to bringing your smile back to full health painlessly. To us, great dental care means your experience in the dental chair is just as important as your final tooth restoration. We design our office with your total comfort in mind, equipping each private patient suite with the latest technology and devices that keep you perfectly at ease throughout the cavity treatment process. Whether you need a filling, crown, or root canal, our dental team is gentle in our care, and we have a keen eye for detail that ensures we never miss a thing when it comes to your procedure.

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Why do I get cavities even though I brush and floss?

Great oral health doesn’t just include brushing and flossing your teeth as recommended. While they can get rid of a lot of the plaque and bacteria that can stick on and between your teeth, they’re not always perfect. Regularly attending visits to our Buena Park office every 4 or 6 months for dental cleanings can remove any cavity and decay-causing buildup on your teeth both above and below the gum line.
Do all cavities require fillings?

Not all cavities are the same, meaning not all treatments for them are the same either. A cavity filling is great for minimal tooth decay in a small area of the mouth. When the decay covers a larger area of the tooth, you may instead need a dental crown to cap the tooth and restore it to its natural shape. Deep cavities may also require a root canal to remove the infected inner pulp and fill the hole left behind.
What does a cavity look like?

A cavity first shows itself by forming a white, chalky spot on your tooth as bacteria and plaque remove the minerals in your teeth keeping them healthy and begin to attack your enamel. The spot will darken until it’s brown or black as your dental cavity worsens and the hole it creates grows. Your tooth may also begin to yellow or discolor around the decay.
What is the safest dental filling?

The safest dental filling material is composite resin. While silver amalgam may be the cheapest option, there is a lot of concern about their safety because they contain mercury, among other metals. At Gold Coast Dental Moreno Valley, our dentists want the best for your smile. In addition to treating your cavities, we can also replace any existing amalgam dental fillings you may have with safe, natural-looking composite ones.
How much does a cavity filling cost?

The cost of your tooth filling depends on the material used, the location of the tooth, and the number of surfaces to be worked on. The more extensive the damage caused by your dental cavity, the more your tooth filling will cost. Additionally, while the two most popular filling materials are amalgam and composite resin, our Moreno Valley dental office exclusively uses composite because it is both the healthiest and most natural-looking option.
Is it necessary to fill cavities in baby teeth?

While you may be tempted to leave your child’s baby tooth cavity untreated, it is crucial to their long-lasting dental health that you get them the proper tooth decay treatment we recommend. Baby teeth may eventually fall out, but they’re also weaker and more vulnerable to dental cavities than adult teeth. Not only can these cavities cause your child a lot of pain and stress if left alone, but the decay can spread to the waiting permanent teeth above. The only time your child’s dentist may recommend leaving a cavity alone is if the infected tooth is loose and close to falling out.