Tooth Bonding Technique

Composite tooth bonding is a cosmetic dentistry technique that can work wonders for your smile. Using materials that match the shade, translucency and texture of your teeth, tooth gaps can be closed, spots, chips, and discolorations can be eliminated, and your self-confidence can be enhanced through the improved appearance of your smile. It's also great for an instant repair of a broken front tooth.

For an explanation of how teeth bonding could help your smile, please see our tooth bonding page. Also see our photographs of tooth bonding work.

        Teeth bonding is usually a one-visit procedure. The tooth is prepared by lightly roughening the area to be repaired, which usually doesn't require anesthetic. Then the surface of the tooth is etched with a gel, and a treatment of bonding primers and resins is applied to the tooth. Then the composite is applied. Dental composites are materials made of acrylic resins impregnated with inorganic fillers, and containing photoinitiators, plus fillers such as quartz, glass, or silicon dioxide. They are made to a paste-like consistency so that they can be sculpted to the proper shape. They contain various pigments which are matched to your tooth color, and they come in varying degrees of translucency, with careful attention paid to their polishability. This composite is applied to your tooth, sometimes in several layers in order to duplicate the depth of color that occurs in a natural tooth. A high-intensity curing light is then used to harden it. With careful artistry, this composite can be manipulated to mimic the color details and translucency of your tooth, and polished to a beautiful shine.

A caution to the consumer: While any general dentist can legally announce that he or she is a "cosmetic dentist," and many dentists do white fillings, we recommend that any patient who wants cosmetic teeth bonding only go to a dentist with extensive post-graduate training in cosmetic dentistry. The teeth bonding techniques and artistry required to do composite bonding well are not required training of general dentists. If you need help finding a cosmetic dentist with adequate training to be able to perform teeth bonding properly, please see our referral page. We list cosmetic dentists from all over the United States and Canada who have that additional training in cosmetic dentistry.

For photographs of some tooth bonding work performed by dentists in our referral network, click here.

    The technology of composite tooth bonding materials is wonderful as far as the beauty that it can bring to your teeth. Still, with all that has been done, there are some limitations to the materials of which you need to be aware. How long bonding lasts depends on many factors that are unique to the individual. Many people will go for ten or fifteen years and have the bonding look as good as the day it was put in. Some people will get staining on the margins of the bonding after one or two years and will need some touch-up work. If you take care of it well, it would be unusual to ever have to replace it, but some touch-up work would be normal after three to five years.
    If your case is one for which the dentist recommended porcelain, you should expect no warranty on the composite bonding.
    Under normal mouth conditions of most people and if used as recommended, the tooth bonding work that is done by a qualified cosmetic dentist will not darken or discolor with age. If it is not damaged by improper professional cleaning by a hygienist, it ordinarily will not stain any more than your natural teeth. In most cases, it is also durable enough to withstand the stresses of ordinary mouth function.

    When veneering or re-shaping is done, it is common to have some areas of sensitivity on the teeth that are treated. This sensitivity may persist for a number of weeks, but should gradually diminish. If you feel that you are experiencing unusual sensitivity, please contact the office for help in alleviating it.

1. Maintain the teeth by brushing and flossing faithfully. Avoid sweets or starchy foods between meals. Bonding holds up much better when it is clean.
2. If you have extensive bonding work, we recommend frequent professional maintenance. Having your teeth cleaned two to four times per year by a hygienist skilled in bonding maintenance can help protect your bonding and make it look better and last longer.
3. Harsh toothpastes will dull the shine on bonding and make it more susceptible to stain. There are two toothpastes that are known to be safe for bonded teeth: Supersmile is the one we recommend (because of its unmatched, gentle stain-removing power). Supersmile is available from cosmetic dental offices but not from stores. We make it available from our web site for a discount along with free shipping. (See our web page about Supersmile toothpaste.) Rembrandt Toothpaste is also safe for bonding and is available from stores, but it isn't quite as effective in our opinion. Hard toothbrushes can also damage bonding. For small areas of tooth bonding, this degree of care is not necessary. But if you have large sections of a tooth or teeth that are bonded, the extra care would be recommended. We also have some information about whitening toothpaste.
4. When bonding is done on the biting edges of the front teeth, it is the most susceptible to breaking. Be careful not to subject it to unnecessary stresses. Carrots, popcorn, and other hard foods should be bitten off to the side, away from areas that have been bonded. Never bite fingernails, pins, or other hard objects with bonded teeth.
5. Do not let your bonded teeth be cleaned with pumice-containing prophylaxis pastes, ultrasonic cleaning devices, or air-polishing instruments. These will damage the surface of the bonding and make it more susceptible to stain. There are special polishing pastes and techniques for bonded teeth that not all hygienists or dentists are aware of.
6. Report to the office if you develop any areas that snag floss or feel rough. Areas like this can be smoothed easily if they are caught early.
7. Alcoholic beverages can cause the bonding to deteriorate prematurely. Also, smoking and frequent drinking of coffee or tea tend to stain both your teeth and the bonding.

Q. What should I do if I have an accident that breaks off part of my tooth?
A. If at all possible, get the piece of your tooth that broke off. an expert cosmetic dentist can replace that piece, bonding it on firmly to the tooth, so that it looks like the tooth was never damaged.

Q. I had some bonding work, and my insurance paid only a small part of the fee. Why?
A. Many insurance plans are restrictive in what they will pay. If you need a filling, they'll pay for the basic filling. When a cosmetic dentist has to do a filling that shows and make it "invisible", so you can't tell your tooth is filled, it requires expert tinting, shaping, and polishing, that may take the cost beyond the basic filling cost that your insurance pays.