i need to get 7 fillings and i am 15 is that bad? the dentist told me that i had no plaque on my teeth?

Question

i dont understand, my teeth are really white and clean but have alot of decay. She mentioned something about the surface of my teeth being really deep

Answer 1

If you have deep grooves in your teeth, you should think about having fissure sealants done. It's very hard to brush correctly when you have deep fissure pits, it's hard to get all the debris out.
A fissure sealant will put a cover over the area to protect it from further decay.

Answer 2

If this is your first trip to the dentist in a long time, I am not surprised. You have a LOT of teeth that came in over the past 3 or 4 years, like a dozen or so, and this means that five of them did NOT decay.

Go to http://drali.enana.com/kids/sealent.htm and look at the "Before" picture. This shows deep grooves that are likely to decay. In fact, I'd be surprised if the tooth in this picture did NOT have decay just under the enamel layer.

A little further down the same page shows a magnification of a tooth brush bristle and a cross section of a deep groove. It also explains why deep grooves are prone to decay.

Years ago, we used to hear the term "cavity prone years" on commercials and they were talking about the ages from 12 to 16, give or take. You are smack dab in the middle of those years and now you know why they made up that term from personal experience.

As far as white fillings mentioned by another answerer, if you look in the mirror and barely see any OUTWARD signs of decay, I would MUCH prefer to have bonded white fillings if I were you. I have several that have been in service fro 20 years and more in similar situations. I am not opposed to using silver amalgam fillings, but I just think the bonded white fillings are far superior in small lesions in deep grooves. This is what I would do for my own children.

Answer 3

from someone who has fillings/crowns in every tooth almost, and a couple of porcealin white fillings... don't get the white fillings. THEY DON'T LAST. I've had the metal fillings for 18 or so years, and I'm fine. The two white fillings, the pretty ones, cracked and broke within no time, I swear. anyway, to answer your question, it's possible to have little small cavities. some people just have sensitive, easily decayed teeth. you'll find years later that you will have new cavities under fillings that have cracked, no matter how well you take care of your teeth. don't want to upset you! just in case, ask the dentist to show you the x-rays, or better yet, take them with you to another dentist for another opinion. (just hand the x-ray to the new dentist, and let HIM count the cavities, don't tell him. see what his number is!!) if the fillings are to be little and not deep, i'd wait, because eventually those little ones will turn into "you need root canals because the decay is deeper" which will entail re-drilling of the teeth to lose more and more of your tooth... sorry!! to summarize, get a second opinion.(Did you know that up until the age of 18, you can get sealants put on your teeth, to prevent them from getting bad? Check into that). good luck to ya.
p.s. bad teeth run in families, so does your mom/dad/siblings have tooth problems? both of my parents, 50, have dentures already.

Answer 4

Get a second opinion. I'm about three times as old as you are and have only three fillings. None of which were truly needed. Two were because my parents believed the dentist and one because a dentist effed up and lied to me. If you brush two to three times a day (really brush), and if you floss, you should not have cavities. Don't fall for the "groves and pits" BS that my parents fell for. Don't believe the hype that pop eats teeth. I drink several pops a day and have not had a "real" cavity yet. If you don't brush and take care of your teeth, then the dentist could be right. If you have a near by community college, call them and see if they have a dental hygien program. These programs are always looking for test patients and they only charge $5 to $10 for the materials. Treatment is free.

Answer 5

I don't believe your dentist.
It's hard to accept, but dentists are often just using your insurance to make money.
I see this happen very often especially (but not limited to) children who have medi-cal or "denti-cal". (government sponsored insurance)
these kids are getting excessive x rays and unnecessary filling, crowns and everything. and they used the guise that low income kids have bad teeth for lack of dental hygeine.
and by the way, If your dentist is still using mercury (silver or black) fillings this is a BAD sign. just so you know, all dentists should be using only porcelin white fillings in the present day.

You are old enough to stand up for yourself and hopefully your parent will listen.
get a second opinion!

Answer 6

That sounds like a lot to me. Maybe you should get a second opinion.

Answer 7

your dentist just wants to make money from you by telling some bs. Find a new dentist

Answer 8

well you have 7 cavities so yes it bad