This video discusses one of the 4 areas we assess when we do our Risk Assessment for patients: The Biomechanical risk.

This area focuses in on the teeth and their risk for cavities, fracture, cracks, wear, and the condition of other restorations you may have.

Some people are more prone than others to getting cavities based on the hardness of their enamel, the type of bacteria and pH of their mouth, and dietary habits. Others have hardly any restorations in their teeth, meaning that the risk of fracture is low. Some people may have several old silver amalgam fillings (we often see cracks around these), or teeth with larger fillings that are at a higher risk of breaking.

We always think about how we can lower risk for cavities and tooth fracture, and not just fix things as they happen. Sometimes crowns are indicated to prevent teeth from breaking, and other times we don’t want to do anything to the teeth – often the best dentistry is no dentistry! We will be doing a future video on crowns to explain our approach and why we do not grind teeth down to “pegs” (a common misconception).

When we look at cosmetic treatment for teeth, a lot of planning goes into it in order to ensure we are not compromising their strength by taking away too much enamel. If possible we always want to add to the teeth.

We hope you find this video informative, and if you have any questions please comment below or feel free to ask us at your next appointment!

For our video on the entire risk assessment, click here: https://eauclaireparkdental.ca/your-personalized-risk-assessment-2/