Page 108 - My FlipBook

104 THE TECHNICAL PROCEDURES IN FILLING TEETH.

efforts should be made at various points to force in the sharp,
wedge-shaped point and any opening made filled with a small
cylinder. When no more gold can be introduced the whole sur-
face should be condensed as completely as possible with the end
of a finely serrated plugger. Then the surplus gold should be
trimmed partially and the condensation repeated. Then again,
trim and condense, repeating this until the surface of the filling
is brought to proper form, with its margins just flush with the
cavity margins. Generally these fillings should be finished with
the burnisher.
Instead of the cylinders, ropes of foil may be used by carry-
ing an end to the bottom of the cavity and folding in fold after
fold, so that one end of the loop is on the floor of the cavity and
the other protruding from the orifice. These loops are con-
densed against the walls laterally and finally condensed by wedg-
ing, the same way as in filling with cylinders, filling the space
gained by other loops. The filling is finished in a similar
manner.
In filling buccal or labial cavities with non-cohesive gold the
steps of the procedure are practically the same as in filling
occlusal cavities. However, the operation is generally rather
more difiicult in these, for the reason that the cavities are so gen-
erally of less depth in proportion to their breadth. The most
convenient cavity to fill with non-cohesive gold is one in which
the depth is nearly equal to the breadth.
One who has become skilful with this manner of manipulating
non-cohesive gold can make gold fillings in cavities suited to this
work in much less time than they can be made with cohesive
gold. This plan of filling is often very desirable for first molars
for children, and in various cases that come up in practice when
it is important to shorten the time of the operation.
These non-cohesive gold fillings do not stand attrition so
well as cohesive gold fillings in positions where great wear comes
upon them. They are, therefore, more suitable for buccal and
labial cavities. If very well done, however, they do excellent
service in occlusal cavities where the wear is not extraordinary.
It is the general opinion of those who use much non-cohesive
gold that water-tight margins are more certainly made with it
than with cohesive gold. I am satisfied that this is correct.
With the same care and skill more gold can be put into a cavity