To protect your teeth against decay our dentists may recommend treatment with fissure sealants. This involves applying a strong resin coating to the biting surfaces of the back teeth to prevent food and bacteria causing cavities.
Molar teeth are located at the back of the mouth and have many grooves and dips causing food and bacteria to become trapped. These uneven surfaces can make it difficult to clean the tooth, increasing the risk of tooth decay.
Fissure sealants can be used to counter this. The hard plastic material effectively seals off gaps in the tooth’s surface so bacteria cannot enter or get trapped.
Children’s teeth can be susceptible to decay so fissure sealants can be a quick and effective dental procedure to shield their adult teeth once they have grown through.
Before application, any tooth requiring a fissure sealant is cleaned and prepared, without the need for any tooth drilling. The resin-based solution is then painted onto the tooth enamel before finally being hardened under a UV light.
This creates a strong coating to protect the tooth for many years. The treatment is safe and completely painless, and generally only needs to be repeated if the resin starts to break away.
