Often, your dentist may suggest dental inlay and also explain why you need it. However, many people are not fully aware about dental inlay. There are inlays and also on-lays which are similar kind of filling.

However, it will be more important to fully understand when an inlay or an on-lay are to be used for your molars, which is grinding teeth in back of the mouth before you meet your dentist Singleton.

What are inlays?

Before we explain you how inlay filling will work, you need to understand first, about the “cusp” of tooth.

Just think of bumps, which are around outer edge of each tooth – which are called as cusps. Suppose, tooth decay or cavity has been created in bottom of any one of the molars, and certain bacteria have grown in this portion of your tooth.

An inlay will be a kind of filling, which will fit entirely within cusps of your tooth and then down into cavity left by the tooth decay.

What are on-lays?

There is a difference between on-lay and inlay, as on-lays is little more extensive. The on-lay will normally lie within cavity, which is created by decay in your tooth, but can also be over one or multiple cusps. On-lays are also often called as “partial crowns.”

What are the pros and cons?

Pros of the dental inlays are as follows:

• Can last for more than 20 years
• Often, they are made with certain durable material e.g. gold, porcelain or a composite resin
• Can be filled in larger cavities and one can avoid use of crown
• As compared to traditional filling, it will weaken much less in your tooth structure

Following are the cons:

• Costly
• Needs minimum 2 visits
• Needs a temporary filling

When should you get dental inlay?

By looking at all the above information that are discussed, it is quite clear that inlay should not be done as a first-line treatment. Only they should be applied when tooth decay is too severe and any traditional filling cannot help.

At the same time, the condition is also not so bad that you will need a crown. But, if you have molar which can fit into this category, then inlay can be the best option.

As a whole, it is necessary that you need to take proper care of all your teeth regularly. However, most of the time you dentist will suggest you the following for taking good care of your health of teeth:

• Daily you must brush your teeth at least 2 times in a day by using fluoride toothpaste
• Try to floss your teeth, every time when you brush. Those who face trouble to floss, you can get floss picks, which can make your job much easier
• Prefer to eat balanced diet with low content in sugar
• Regularly pay a visit to your dentist after every 6 months for cleaning and also more often for various other issues like your tooth pain.

You must remember that you are one of the most important member of your own dental care team.