The Dangers of Dental Amalgam

Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com J Dent Health Oral Disord Ther 2015, 2(3): 00052 researched mercury poisoning and identified through his research that silver amalgam fillings in the mouth were a source of mercury vapor. More recently, many studies reported that amalgam may constitute potential toxic hazards to patients through mercury release and absorption, surface corrosion, and the reaction of released mercury with residual alloy particles to form additional inter metallic compounds. Furthermore, mercury may migrate gradually from an amalgam restoration into the enamel, dentin, pulp tissues, and adjacent gingival tissue where it accumulates [1]. Increased mercury levels in the gingiva adjacent to sub gingival amalgam restorations have been reported. In addition, fine amalgam particles may become accidentally embedded in the soft tissues of the mouth, most commonly the gingiva, when they are abraded by high speed rotary instruments, during the removal of the amalgam fillings and preparation of crowns over amalgam cores. Moreover, this can occur when amalgam is used as a retrograde root filling material, and produces tattoo [2].