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FILLING TEETH 109

force used in inserting the gold may set up irri-
tation in these cases, and it is always well to be
cautious. It is very annoying to have spent con-
siderable time on a gold filling, and then to be
compelled to remove it, owing to a recurrence of
some previously diseased condition.
Then at>-ain, the extent to which the tooth has
been weakened by decay must be considered.
Many teeth are decayed in such a manner that
proper excavation for gold would cause them soon
to break down, whereas many of these teeth may be
successfully restored with a plastic material, such as
amalgam, and the attachment of a crown to the
root postponed for several years.
The main point to be considered — providing the
patient is a good one—is the probability of the
tooth lasting a long time if filled with gold. It is
no use putting a filling which, under favourable
circumstances, might last twenty years in a tooth
that will probably only last two ; and even when
everything appears favourable, the dentist, if skilled
and conscientious, will take every precaution to pre-
vent further decay taking place, for beyond the
fact that it will in itself resist the action of all
the fluids of the mouth, no matter what their con-
dition may be; and that if skilfully and carefully
worked, it will not wear away or chip at the edges,