A coaching institution for ADC examination, and Government dental jobs exam.
SAQ 1. A patient arrives at your office and expresses concern about mercury from dental amalgam causing her harm. What will you tell this patient to reassure her about the safety of amalgam?
ANSWER:
You will explain three facts of dental amalgam fillings:
(1) The mercury present in amalgam is not free. It is always tied up chemically in the dental amalgam matrix. It is never released into the body. The majority of bound mercury never leaves the dental amalgam mass.
In this section, we shall discuss the composition, type and properties of the dental amalgams alloys used for restoration purpose in posterior teeth as per following format. The source of these notes, MCQs and explanation is Phillips’ Science of Dental Materials, 12th Ed and Sturtevant’s Art and Science of Operative Dentistry.
Zinc as such does not participate in the amalgamation process or in the setting reaction of silver amalgam alloy with mercury during and after the completion of the restoration process.