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Brightside Restorative dentistry

Between a filling
and a crown.

A lab-made repair cemented into or over a back tooth, for damage that is too much for a filling but does not warrant covering the whole tooth.

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What it is

They keep more of your own tooth.

An inlay sits within the cusps. An onlay covers one or more of them. Both are made outside the mouth and bonded in, which gives a better shape and contact than a very large direct filling. Compared with a crown, less sound tooth is removed, which is the main reason to prefer one where it is an option.

  • A back tooth has a very large old filling
  • A cusp has cracked but the tooth is otherwise sound
  • A filling keeps failing at the same margin
  • You want to avoid reducing the tooth for a crown
  • There is decay under an existing large restoration
  • The tooth is not root-treated and has good structure left

What the visit is like

Two visits, like a crown.

  1. Shape and scanThe old filling and any decay come out, the tooth is shaped, then scanned or impressioned.
  2. A temporaryYou leave with a temporary while the lab makes the piece.
  3. Bonding it inFit and contacts checked, then bonded. Bonding matters more here than with a crown, so this step is not rushed.
  4. Bite checkAdjusted until it feels level, same as any restoration.

Cost and coverage

You should never be surprised by a bill.

Every plan arrives with the fee beside each line and the insurance estimate beside that, before you agree to anything. We submit to your plan directly where it allows it, and we are set up for the Canadian Dental Care Plan.

Fees for this are quoted in writing after an exam, per tooth and per surface. Nobody can price it accurately from a website or over the phone.

Common questions

Asked on the phone most weeks.

Why not just a big filling?
Very large direct fillings are harder to shape well, and the contact with the neighbouring tooth is harder to get right, which is where food packing starts. A lab-made piece solves both.
Why not a crown?
A crown means reducing the whole tooth. Where enough sound structure remains, an onlay keeps more of your own tooth, and that is generally worth having.
How long do they last?
It depends on the tooth, your bite and whether you grind. We will give you a realistic range for your specific tooth rather than a general figure.

Booking

Say what it is when you call.

If it is pain, say that -- it changes how the day gets arranged. If it is a checkup for three people, say that too and we will try to put you in one morning.

Also at Brightside

Call (778) 754-4488 Hours and location