Dental Amalgam

Dental Amalgam is a commonly used dental filling that has been used for over 150 years.  Amalgam has many advantages over other restorative materials, such as low cost, strength, durability, and bacteriostatic effects.

Amalgam is used in dentistry for a number of reasons.  It is relatively easy to use and manipulate during placement; it remains soft for a short time so it can be packed to fill any irregular volume and then forms a hard compound. Amalgam possesses greater longevity than other direct restorative materials, such as composite.  On average, most amalgam restorations serve for 10 to 12 years, whereas resin-based composites serve for about half that time.

There may be circumstances in which composite (white fillings) may serve better than amalgam.  When a more conservative preparation would be beneficial, composite is the recommended restorative material. These situations would include small occlusal restorations, in which amalgam would require the removal of  more sound tooth structure.

The American Dental Association Council on Scientific Affairs has concluded that both amalgam and composite materials are considered safe and effective for tooth restoration.