Caries appears on the teeth after they erupt and appear in the oral cavity. The main cause of tooth decay is plaque bacteria, which secrete acids that destroy tooth enamel. First black dots and spots on the tooth enamel appear, then the caries deepens and a carious cavity appears (“hollow or hole”). At this point, a person begins to worry about pain in the tooth upon a cold, hot, sweet and sour touch. Also, the patient may notice a constant ingestion of food between the teeth, inflammation of the gums near the tooth, unpleasant odor, bleeding during brushing and the formation of plaque. All these unpleasant symptoms arise due to the fact that the appeared carious cavity is filled with food debris that a person cannot clean out on his own. Plaque bacteria multiply, secrete acids and further caries deepen. The closer the caries is to the nerve, the more pains on various irritants (cold, hot) are disturbed.

Often patients ask: doctor, is it possible to do without “drilling”?

Treatment of caries without a drill is possible only in the very initial stage, when a stain only appears on the tooth. At this point, tooth decay can be cured by saturating enamel with fluoride and calcium preparations. The remineralization procedure is carried out after cleansing the teeth of plaque and stones. Unfortunately, most often patients go to the doctor at a time when you can’t do without a drill. In this case, it is necessary to completely clean the tooth from caries in order to prevent its further destruction.

In some cases, especially if caries is between the teeth, or if there is caries under an old filling, the doctor needs an X-ray. He will show the depth of caries and its proximity to the nerve of the tooth.

The treatment regimen for caries is as follows:

• Anesthesia
• Cleansing the tooth of plaque and stones
• Isolation from saliva by a rubber dam system, which is a guarantee of the quality of treatment. Filling material ideally lies only on a completely dry tooth surface. If saliva or moisture in the exhaled air gets on the tooth, the material will not “stick” to the tooth
• The preparation of affected tissues, while healthy enamel and dentin are preserved, especially the tubercles and the cutting edge of the teeth. They are the supporting structures of the tooth
• Tooth restoration with filling material
• Grinding by smoothness, grinding by bite and polishing with special pastes.

Remember, it is much better (and cheaper) to treat only caries, and not its complications!