Photograph of Fissure Sealant

The ‘before’ intra oral photo shows the occlusal (top) surface of a child’s healthy lower left first molar tooth. The ‘after’ intra oral photo shows the same molar tooth after a preventative fissure sealant restoration has been carried out (seen as the milky white coating). One of the more common sights where dental decay develops, particularly in childhood years is in the pits and fissures of the occlusal (top) surfaces of molar teeth. At these sights plaque can build up and is not as easily removed by one’s tooth brushing technique compared to plaque on the smoother tooth surfaces. One method of preventing cavities from developing in these susceptible areas is for the dentist to seal them with an adhesive varnish type fissure sealant. This procedure would first involve cleaning/polishing of the occlusal surfaces of the teeth to be fissure sealed. A mild acidic solution is then used to ‘etch’ the fissures which facilitates improved bonding of the sealant to the tooth surface. The tooth is then washed, dried and measures taken to isolate the tooth and keep it dry. This is to prevent contamination of the tooth surface by saliva which would be detrimental to the adhesion of the sealant. The fissure sealant resin is then placed over the pits and fissures and a ‘curing’ light used to set the resin.