Tooth decay is a common problem affecting both children and adults. Cavities form in the teeth by the action of acid producing bacteria present in dental plaque.
A number of techniques and a variety of materials can be used to restore teeth and one of the most commonly used and comparatively cheap filling material is dental amalgam (a mixture of mercury and metal alloy particles). The review authors sought to evaluate the added benefit of using an adhesive to bond amalgam to tooth structure to see if bonded fillings would last longer.
Only one study, which provided limited data, showed that for medium sized fillings there was no difference in sensitivity between the bonded and non-bonded fillings after their placement and that bonding of amalgam to tooth did not have any effect on the survival of the filling over a 2-year period and thus the time taken for the additional step in addition to the cost of bonding material cannot be justified.