The Tooth is a mineralized tissue mainly consisting of calcium.

It has three layers. The outer and the hardest is the Enamel, which protects the tooth.

The second layer is Dentin which makes up the bulk of the tooth. Dentin has many tiny tubes through which nourishment reaches from the pulp. The innermost part of a tooth is the pulp. It 9is soft part which houses blood vessels and nerves.

If the surface of enamel is weak or is eaten up by bacteria, it becomes soft and dark in colour. We call it Caries or cavity. Traditionally cavity in a tooth was filled by Silver Amalgam. It contains Mercury, Which can cause allergic to Toxic reactions in some individuals.

Recent years these fillings are done with a Composite resin… This has an advantage of being tissue-friendly, tooth coloured. Moreover, it doesn’t require drilling the tooth extensively.

When the cavity extends too deep, close to a pulp or the pulp is already infected, Root canal treatment is carried out.

In this procedure, the pulp tissue is completely removed up to the roots and the canals are cleaned with chemicals and then widened. Resin cones are filled in the canals.

This whole process requires 3-4 visits. After the root canal Treatment, the tooth becomes brittle as its blood supply is stopped.

Such a tooth is prone to fracture. It is then covered with a crown or cap.