What is the Procedure for Having a Tooth Bonded?
• Preparation. Little advance preparation is needed for dental bonding, although sometimes we need to reshape or contour the surface. Anesthesia is often not necessary unless the bonding is being used to fill a decayed tooth. We will use a shade guide to select a composite resin color that will closely match the color of your tooth. • The bonding process. Next the surface of the tooth will be roughened and a conditioning liquid applied. These procedures help the bonding material adhere to the tooth. The tooth-colored, puttylike resin is then applied, molded and smoothed to the desired shape. A powerful specially designed light is then used to harden the material. After the material is hardened, we will trim and shape it, and polish it to match the sheen of the rest of the tooth surface. • Time-to-completion. The procedure takes about 30 to 60 minutes per tooth to complete. The length of the visit will depend on the condition of your teeth and on how much repair work you are having done
