Inlays and Onlays

Inlays & Onlays from your Oakridge Dentist

Inlays and onlays are called indirect restorations, because the restoration is fabricated outside of the mouth, instead of being built in layers directly into the teeth like a filling. The dentist takes impressions of the teeth, then the restoration is shaped to match the part of the tooth it will replace. The restoration is attached with dental cement.

An indirect restoration is an inlay if it covers part of a tooth, without extending to a cusp (pointed tip of tooth). It is an onlay if it extends to replace a tooth’s cusp. And if it complete covers the top surface of the tooth, it is called a crown or cap. They are made of white composite material, gold, or tooth-coloured porcelain and are made by a professional dental laboratory before they are permanently cemented into the tooth by your dentist.

At our Oakridge dental practice, Inlays and onlays can be used to conservatively repair teeth that have large defective fillings or have been damaged by decay or trauma. Also, they are more conservative than crowns because less tooth structure is removed.