What are dental sealants?
Dental sealants are pretty much a filling, just like any other filling put in your mouth, except the filling material that we use is really runny. We use these sealants to seal off deep pits and grooves, mainly on young children and sometimes adults.
As your teeth develop, you have cusps on the outside that you kind of chew on. Then you have these really deep pits and valleys up in between them. All a sealant is, is we just polish up that little area and we flow in a nice runny composite material that will flow down into those deep valleys and pits. It gets rock hard, and then it will prevent food and other debris from getting smashed down into these little grooves and pits. That's usually what will cause a cavity. A dental sealant really seals off deep pits and grooves to prevent food particles from getting stuck and causing a dental cavity.
How do dental sealants work?
A dental sealant works by sealing off a deep pit or groove. Again, back teeth, front teeth, all your teeth, somewhere on there is going to be a pit or a groove. And that little pit or groove is way more likely to pick up plaque, tartar, or calculus and lead to a cavity. Our whole goal with the sealant is to seal off that deep pit or groove, and it makes it less likely to have a cavity form in that area.
What are the different types of dental sealants?
They're all pretty much the same thing. There's always different kinds of materials we can use, but a dental sealant is really considered one thing: us sealing off a deep pit or groove. So there's really one type.
How are dental sealants applied to teeth?
They're one of the simplest fillings that we get to apply here in dentistry. All we really do is go to the tooth that we're going to apply the sealant to. We do a nice little polish to make sure there's no plaque or debris on top of that tooth.
Then we just flow this material right down into these deep pits and grooves, hit it with a little light, and it makes it rock hard. Off you go. Normally, you're not getting numb. You don't need any tooth removal. It's really just sealing something off. It usually takes under five minutes. As you leave, you are free to eat, drink, and do whatever you want.
How soon can I brush my teeth after getting dental sealants?
Instantly. There's no wait period for that. As soon as these sealants are hit with their light, cured, and ready to go, you can use them as if they've been in there for a year.
How long do dental sealants last?
Again, like everything in dentistry, it's all pretty much dependent on your situation. I've seen sealants last in people's teeth for 30, 40 years. They're in their 50s and they still have little sealants on the back of their teeth. And I see some kids that had sealants placed, and they're back three years later and they're gone. Normally, a nice, well-placed sealant should at least last 5 to 10 years in your tooth.
Can dental sealants help with sensitive teeth?
Yes, they sure can. But it all really depends on the sensitivity that you're having. Depending on what's causing your sensitivity, it might be a sealant that can help out with it, or it might be something else that we talk about to take care of that sensitivity.
Can you get dental sealants if you have fillings or tooth decay?
Yes, but we wouldn't put it over top of an existing filling, and we wouldn't put it over top of a cavity. Again, we are placing sealants on teeth that just have deep pits and grooves that we're going to seal off. Now, if you have a tooth next to it that has a cavity, we wouldn't put a sealant on that. We'd just do a normal filling.
And again, that involves getting numb, removing the cavity, and replacing it with this filling material. With a sealant, we're not removing a cavity. We're not removing tooth structure. We're just filling in deep pits and grooves.
How much does a dental silent cost to get applied to my teeth?
Depending on your dental insurance or if you have insurance, it could be as little as zero if your insurance covers the entire preventative procedure. Or if you have no insurance and it's straight out of pocket, our fee is $79.
How can I schedule an appointment with Reiser Dental for dental sealants?
If you’re ready to schedule an exam or would like to learn more about our services, we’d love to hear from you. Call us at (720) 797-5554 or email [email protected]. We look forward to caring for your smile.