What are cavities

Cavities, also known as caries (KARE-eez), are areas of decay on the teeth that are caused by bacteria* . They are one of the most common of all human diseases. Almost half of American children have had a cavity by age four. Not only childr…

http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3497700090.html#B

Cavities are lesions on the teeth. To put it in simple terms, they are holes on the teeth. Technically they are known as dental caries.

http://www.wiesbaden.army.mil/sites/services/dental_facts.asp

When you eat, food passes through your mouth. Here it meets germs or bacteria that live in your mouth. You may have heard the dentist talk about plaque. Plaque is a sticky film of bacteria. These bacteria love sugars and starches found in m…

http://www.rolfedentistry.com/faq.html#what_are_c

Related Questions Answered on Y!Answers

cavities ???

Q: i have never had a cavity in my life everrrr! im17 and im getting invisalign. the doctor said it didnt look like i had any but he had to check if i had any cavities in order to start my treatment. im just wondering what they do if you have one. how do they fix it and do they have to inject ya with anesthetic. haha i dont know anything about it.

A: wow. that’s great, no cavities!!! Chances are you don’t have any, you seem to have taken very good care of them. IF he does find one, sometimes they are just soft spots on your tooth, it is really very simple.Especially because your teeth are in such good health. What they do is Xray all of your teeth. They will check for cavities, and any wisdom teeth not yet seen. If a cavity is found, they will give you a little pinch for the numbing medicine. Sometimes, they will do a topical to help numb the skin first. It really doesn’t hurt, it is a pinch, and it can be uncomfortable, but it goes away quickly. After you are numb, the dentist will use a little tiny drill bit to clean out the bad stuff, put a solution on the cleaned out tooth, like a glue, and then put in the filling. Today they use something called a composite filling, its white and looks just like your tooth. After all this is done, he will ask you to bite down on some articulating paper…something like carbon paper, to see if it needs to be adjusted. After that, you are done ! If you feel like you aren’t biting down right, go back and have them shave it a bit. no numbing needed this time.It is really no big deal. You can be out of there in 30 Min’s !

Is it possible for small cavities to disappear?

Q: I had these two really tiny cavities and my first molars on both my left and right side. They were really small ones and I talked to my dentist long ago about them. She said they weren’t a big deal and that if I maintained good oral hygiene, I shouldn’t expect them to get bigger. Anyway, every night I floss and for the past few days I’ve noticed that one of the cavities (on my right first molar) has disappeared. It’s gone and the one on my left seems to be getting smaller. I haven’t been to dentist in two months. Is this possible that tiny cavities can just disappear like this?

A: If the incipient decay is limited to just the enamel, it can indeed re-mineralize if you maintain good oral hygiene.However, if the decay has already penetrated the enamel and into the dentin, it will require a dentist to drill out the decay and fill the tooth.In your next checkup (4 months from now), the dentist should take a bitewing X-ray to make sure there is no decay in the dentin. If there is none, you are in good shape.

How definitive are cavities? I saw two dentists and each told me I had cavities in different teeth. ?

Q: Due to insurance reasons I saw a new dentist before getting fillings from the old one. I told him my last dentist said I had two cavities and agreed, sorta. Are dentists like car mechanics making up problems to bring in the money?So how do I find an honest dentist?

A: yes!i had a dentist that said i needed like 2000 worth of work done for cavities. I got the one done and he refused to give me more novicane so i didn’t go back for the other two parts of the dentistrythat was two years ago and i went to the dentist the other day and they said my teeth are fine!