Ceramic Fillings

Ceramics are one of the material categories used for indirect restorations. Their tooth-coloured appearance, chemical inertness and wear resistance are among the reasons they are used in restorative dentistry.

A filling is used when decay has created a hole in a tooth. Ceramic can be considered where a tooth-coloured indirect restoration is wanted, because indirect materials differ in strength, durability, appearance and cost.

The placement detail supported here is that an indirect restoration may be conventionally cemented or adhesively bonded to the tooth. The method is linked to the material properties and clinical situation.

Ceramics can fracture without warning when they are flexed excessively. Their hardness can also wear the opposing teeth, so material choice needs to match the restoration's intended clinical function.

Ceramics have wear resistance, yet excessive flexing can cause a fracture and their hardness can damage opposing teeth through wear. Those material limits affect longevity alongside the restoration's intended use.

Ceramic fillings are indirect restorations, so the completed restoration is fitted to the tooth rather than formed there. It may be secured with conventional cement or through adhesive bonding.

The restoration remains fixed to the tooth through either conventional cementation or adhesive bonding. Water-based and resin-based cements are available for indirect restorations.

Indirect restorations can be made from noble metal alloys, base metal alloys, ceramics, resin-based composites or metal-ceramics. Lithium silicate and zirconia-reinforced lithium silicate are ceramic alternatives with similar properties and indications.

Indirect restorative materials present different combinations of strength, durability, cosmetic appearance and cost. Ceramic standards classify materials by intended clinical use and set minimum mechanical-strength and chemical-solubility requirements for each class.

The material itself is one cost consideration: indirect restorations vary in strength, durability and cosmetic qualities as well as cost. Conventional cementation and adhesive bonding are also different ways an indirect restoration may be fitted.