Broken filling. Will I be charged?

Chris_Cardiff

I recently visited a BUPA essentials dentist on Thursday for my first ever fillings.
My back wisdom room felt slightly odd after and I originally thought it was the anesthetic. However I now think the filling was possibly too big as I could sense a new shape in my jaw allignment and was catching my cheek.
What's worse on Sunday morning I felt as if part of the filling is missing (though I don't feel any pain), but feel an indentation in the tooth which I'm sure shouldnt be there.
My concern is will the dentist charge me again for the failed filling (which already set me back £172), or should I be covered given it only happened within days of the treatment?

brook2jack

If the falling is broken it should be repaired/replied free of charge. Most dentists will offer a guarantee of at least a year.

If it was a large filling and part of the tooth has broken off the tooth might need a crown/inlay which would mean another charge.

sammyjammy

They don't level fillings off these days so they do feel overfilled and weird when you first have them, they rely on you to naturally grind down the excess to make it smooth with your teeth naturally, could it just be this?

pollypenny

My dentist takes great trouble to file down filings so that the teeth meet as they should.

Toothsmith

pollypenny wrote: »

My dentist takes great trouble to file down filings so that the teeth meet as they should.

Exactly. Teeth are not left high or 'big' deliberately, but as you are sensitive to a difference of 1/100 th mm on your bite, it is fairly easy to realise later that a tooth is high. Especially if your jaw was pretty numb at the time of doing it.

Very occasionally, a crown might be left high - especially if a temporary had come off, and for one reason or another the patient couldn't get back for it to be recemented. In that case, the tooth can move a tiny bit, making the new crown feel high, but then that movement can reverse once the proper crown is on. Occasionally, too, a filling might be required to actually change the bite a little. But that is certainly not routine, and the reasons for doing it should be discussed with the patient well before it's agreed to do it.

Other than that - if a dentist is telling you fillings are deliberately left high nowadays - then you need to be looking for a new dentist!!!!!