Dental Filling Aftercare

After you have had a filling, your mouth will feel numb for 1 – 3 hours. It is very important not to chew on the numb side – as there is danger of biting your tongue or lip etc. Do not chew on this side until the anaesthetic wears off

  • Observe a child until the anaesthetic wears off – the feeling of numbness is new and strange to them and they may “play” with it – trying to bite or chew on the numbed area!
  • Be careful also of hot drinks – you will not be able to tell the temperature in that area and could burn yourself
  • As the anaesthesia wears off, you may experience some pins and needles before feeling normal again
  • Once you can feel normally again – check your bite. If you feel that any of the teeth that we worked on are touching first when you bite down, you should call us as this imbalance should be adjusted.
  • With silver fillings – do not chew or hard foods or chew directly on the new fillings for the first 24 hours. Try to use the other side of your mouth. If you have fillings on both sides, stick to soft foods and liquids
  • With White fillings, it is safe to chew immediately – or as soon as the numbness wears away
  • You may feel some pain around the injection site and your tooth may also be somewhat sensitive initially. If this pain or sensitivity does not settle down over the following week, please call us to discuss.
  • There may be more pain in the gum if you had a side filling – and/or a matrix band has been used to shape the tooth. This may leave the gum tender for a few days.
  • If you have had a “deep” filling – it means that the filling is very close to the nerve and has been performed on a “vulnerable” tooth. Because of the existing inflammation in the tooth, you may experience continued pain for a few days after the filling
  • While the deep filling is performed to save the tooth, sometimes it may not work. You may not know about this – as if the nerve has died, the tooth could remain pain free for a long time. However, if the deep filling does not work, you will need a root canal treatment at some point, to retain the tooth.
  • Remember why you needed a filling in the first place and take care to perform regular and routine brushing and flossing, with careful attention also to a healthy teeth diet

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53 Voortrekker Avenue,
Edenvale, Gauteng, 1610

011 453 7612
011 453 7613

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