Did you know that there are many ways that dentists can help fix your teeth beyond just fillings?
A good dentist assesses your specific needs and determines what would be best for your mouth for proper healing and care. It’s not all caps and fillings, there’s much more to it than that.
When you’re going in for a dental procedure, you might hear words that you’re unfamiliar with. Inlays? Onlays? What are those? Your dentist knows what they’re doing, but do you want to know what’s going on with your teeth?
If you want the ins and outs of what’s happening inside your mouth, keep reading to learn about dental inlays, dental onlays, and the differences between them.
What Are Dental Inlays?
If you’ve ever had a filling, you might be somewhat familiar with a dental inlay. They’re the same idea, but they have a few differences.
With dental inlays (and fillings) there’s a hole drilled into the tooth to remove the cavity and create a space where something new needs to go. A filling is a soft (though hardening) material that goes into that space.
An inlay is a bit different but serves the same purpose. It’s good for larger cavities where fillings may not quite suffice or be safe enough.
Inlays are specially made to custom-fit to the tooth in question. They’re hard and made in one piece out of materials like ceramic, or if you’re feeling fancy, gold.
Why Get a Dental Inlay?
If inlays and fillings are so similar, why bother getting an inlay? They seem more complicated, right?
Inlays have less potential for future complications because of the way that the material is made and set into the tooth. While both of these healing methods can contract inside the tooth after they’re put in, inlays have less potential to contract and leave space between them and the tooth material. This means that there’s less of a chance for debris to get caught inside the tooth within the gap.
Inlays are considered a longer-term fix. Ideally, inlays are completely permanent and shouldn’t require touch-ups although this isn’t definite.
Unfortunately, inlays are also more expensive than fillings because of their increased potential for longevity. For this reason, many forms of dental insurance aren’t interested in covering inlays even though spending once for inlays may end up being less money overall than spending multiple times for fillings.
This can result in an insurance company denying a claim for inlays and requiring that a patient get fillings instead, or pay out of pocket.
What Are Dental Onlays?
Dental onlays, despite sounding similar, are completely different from dental inlays. They’re more similar to dental crowns.
Dental onlays are good for when there is a lot of damage or decay in the structure of the tooth that a filling or inlay simply can not fix. Perhaps the damage extends to the top or outside, making a filling inadequate for this purpose.
An onlay lays on or over the tooth after the cavity is drilled out and removed.
Dental onlays, like dental inlays, are custom made to fit the mouth and teeth of the person getting them. They need to fit the exact space and shape of the tooth in order to work correctly.
Crowns, however, which serve the same purpose, aren’t quite as custom. They cover the entire biting surface of the tooth making them much easier to produce and fit.
Why Opt for a Dental Onlay?
Dental onlays are custom made for your mouth, making them incredibly secure. They’re also less invasive to put in.
When a cap or crown is put on, more of the tooth needs to be removed to install the new object. With an onlay, because the entire piece can be custom fit, only the parts that need to be removed will be removed.
A skilled dentist will be able to do minimum damage to your healthy tooth and install an onlay that fits perfectly to the given space. The procedure is less intense than a standard crown fitting and cavity removal.
That said, because the dentist needs to be so skilled and talented, insurance often doesn’t want to cover the onlays, and they favor the artificial crowns.
Onlays are less expensive to produce and lay down, but they’re less commonly done. Even less so because of the lack of insurance coverage, meaning fewer dentists learn this skill.
Finding a skilled dentist to do an onlay instead of a crown could be beneficial to your overall oral health.
So, What’s the Difference Between Inlays and Onlays?
Inlays and onlays serve different purposes. They are both effective dental procedures for managing and fixing problems related to tooth decay and cavities, though inlays are for smaller issues inside the tooth, and onlays can cover more of the tooth’s surface.
Both are done by skilled dentists and provide materials that are custom-made for your mouth specifically. They’re just for different dental problems!
Inlays and Onlays: The More You Know
If you end up with an unfortunate cavity (it happens), consider asking about dental inlays or onlays during your next dental visit. These are long-term and natural-looking solutions to your dental problems that can really help benefit your oral health and smile.
Our skilled dentists can help provide you with the dental onlays or inlays that you need to protect your teeth. Ask about our same-day onlays if you’re in a hurry!
For more information, or to request an appointment with our dentists, visit our site.