Dental onlays to restore your smile and preserve your tooth with conservative, aesthetic treatment

Not all dentists in and around Jackson, New Jersey, and greater Ocean and Monmouth counties market “aesthetic onlays.” But at Aesthetic Dental Creations, we are privileged to offer onlays as a conservative alternative to full-coverage or more extensive restorations, such as dental crowns. Dr. Balaji Srinivasan understands that the more natural and otherwise healthy tooth structure that we can preserve, the better off the damaged tooth will be in the long run. So, conservative techniques or treatments that keep the most tooth structure are very much at the heart of the recommendations that we make to our patients.

Decayed, broken, weak, or otherwise damaged teeth that have more dental materials introduced to them and that represent greater alteration of the natural tooth are more vulnerable to being damaged again in the future. Having ample tooth structure helps to support the materials that are introduced, shaped, and secured in place — to build up the tooth and restore it to its lovely appearance, strength, and healthy function.

Basics

In Dr. Srinivasan’s skillful hands, dental materials such as ceramics or porcelain are prepared and shaped to look, feel, and function like natural, healthy tooth structure. Fillings are shaped to “fill in” or repair holes or cavities in the tooth caused by decay. Dental inlays are placed to repair more extensive damage that affects the tooth’s surface between its cusps or points. Onlays are a step up in coverage from inlays; they cover the damaged surface of the tooth and at least one tooth cusp. Onlays are sometimes called “partial crowns” because they are a more conservative alternative to full dental crowns. Full-coverage crowns fit over the entire visible part of the damaged tooth after it has been “prepared” (decayed areas of the tooth have been removed). Unlike the other options listed here, full crowns do not build up portions of the crown or the white, visible part of the tooth. The full-coverage crown is designed to replicate the appearance and structure of the natural crown.

Your dentist may determine that you are a great candidate for dental onlays if:

  • You have an old filling that needs to be replaced
  • Your filling has sustained damage
  • You would need a large filling to repair the damaged tooth
  • A filling or inlay provides inadequate “coverage” to support the tooth over the long term

Not unlike some of the other restorations listed here, the process of getting an onlay is straightforward. It involves cleaning the tooth and bonding the shaped dental material or onlay into place.

We welcome your questions about these and other services at our office. Call Aesthetic Dental Creations at (732) 451-3570, serving Jackson, Lakewood, Toms River, Manchester, and the surrounding region.

Dr. Balaji Srinivasan

Dr. Balaji Srinivasan is inspired by the passion and purpose he discovers in dentistry and strives to provide his clients with exceptional services. He graduated from Drew University in Madison, New Jersey. He then attended Creighton University School of Dentistry in Omaha, Nebraska, and a residency program in Advanced General Dentistry at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In 1997, he established Madison Avenue Dental Associates, where he worked for ten years. He then established Aesthetic Dental Creations in Jackson, New Jersey, in 2008 and has not looked back since.

Dr. Srinivasan is an alumnus of the world-renowned Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Training. He has received specialized training in adhesive dentistry and smile design. Dr. Srinivasan is also very effective at treating migraine/headaches because of his expertise in neuromuscular(physiologic) dentistry. He has lectured to dentists at Monmouth Medical Center on various topics. You can count on him to make your dental visit as pleasant as possible!