Dear Patients,

Happy or sad? Well, the children are back to school and the days are getting shorter. After an awesome summer, fellow Clevelanders look to the coming seasons with a combined anticipation and trepidation.

From the moment of our existence, man has had dental problems. In early civilizations most dentistry involved simple extraction therapy. As dentistry developed people were offered more exotic therapy like fillings and implants. In the early 19th century scientists developed a long lasting, durable and serviceable filling material that replaced decayed areas of the persons’ teeth. Over the last century dentists have placed millions of amalgam fillings in teeth with an incredibly high success rate, however with all therapies there are always downsides.

Amalgam (silver) fillings have mercury in them which is a known poison. Not only is this material toxic to the people it is placed in, it is also released as a free mercury when it is removed. Despite the fact that it is a wonderful filling material, amalgam has too many negative properties for my office to recommend its use.

Fortunately, many scientists recognized the shortcomings of amalgam and pursued the development of the white colored filling material “composite”. Our office gladly removes nonserviceable unsightly amalgam fillings and replaces them with the beautiful tooth colored composites.

If you or someone you love needs an old amalgam replaced, please call our office for an appointment.

Sincerely,

Michael W. Dagostino, DDS