Over time, old restorations such as Amalgam (a type of restorative material composed of Silver-Tin-Copper alloy and Mercury) may present leaks or recurrent caries underneath which causes the gradual decay of the tooth structure. This type of restorative material also creates stains on the tooth called Amalgam Tattoo, which are pigments left by the restorative material that are hard to remove without reducing a lot of the tooth structure.
Here we have a patient with multiple Amalgam restorations that have already developed recurrent caries. Because removal of the old restorations resulted into little tooth structure left for some of the teeth, a combination of Porcelain-fused-to-Zirconia crowns as well as ceramic onlays were used to restore them. The result is a much healthier smile with uncompromised function.
