What are Preventative Resins?
Preventative resins are applied to the pits and grooves of teeth that have shown high risk for developing dental decay. We apply them when we see that a patient has developed a cavity on other similar teeth in their mouth. For example, if one or two of a child's 6 year molars have developed decay, it might be prudent to apply the preventative resin to the other two 6 year molars.
Why might you benefit from Preventative Resins?
The reason you might benefit from a preventative resin is because your back teeth have grooves, deep fissures and pitting. This can sometimes make it difficult to keep the teeth clean. Likewise, these areas can become deeply stained over time and be more susceptible to tooth decay. Both children and adults can benefit from having preventative resins placed.
What makes a person a candidate for preventative resins?
With the help of a thorough examination, we will be able to determine if preventative resins are right for you. They are great for patients of all ages, though we often recommend them to our pediatric patients who may not be able to brush and floss properly just yet. If you have older sealants that have worn out, we can replace them easily in our office with a preventative resin at your own convenience.
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What happens during the preventative resin procedure?
The preventative resin procedure is quick, simple and done within minutes in our office. We first clean the teeth we are treating with our laser and check for any potential decay with a cavity detecting dye.
Once we are certain there is no decay and the enamel is prepared properly, we use ozone to sterilize the surface of the tooth and dry it. We then apply a bonding agent and a biocompatible, BPA-free, fluoride-free flowable composite resin material. The preventative resin is then dried and cured with a bright light. The process is then repeated for any other back teeth that need this type of protection. It is important that you still brush and floss your teeth normally, since preventative resins do not protect the smooth surfaces of the teeth, like any surface of the front teeth or between the back teeth after they have been placed in our office.
If you would like to learn more about sealants, call us today and our friendly staff members can answer all of your questions.
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