Just how old is silver point?

[Lumo]

I'm just back from my dentist, getting a root treatment redone. The original treatment was 18 months old. After cleaning it out the dentist told me that it looked like one of the roots have been filled with silver point, but he was very surprised to see that in such a new root treatment, he also said I was probably the youngest person he had seen with one, he then said on the x ray it didn't look like silver point as it wasn't particularly dark which is why he wasn't expecting to find that.

How common are silver point root treatments? How many dentists 18months ago would still have been using it?

 

[Dr. Daniel]

Not many dentists.
For the last few decades the silver cones were rarely used in America and west Europe, more in east Europe. I would guess that your former dentist learned in eastern Europe.
However, there is a chance I am wrong and there was an indication for silver and not gutta-perka (the most used material).

 

[Lumo]

Many thanks for your reply.

My former dentist was Scottish and the clinic was in Scotland, but it could be he was trained in the east. He was also quite young so it doesn't seem like he was an old timer stuck in his ways. Strange. Would be interesting to know why he used that.

I see you have a Bsc in Psychology, me too, mine was also in 2007!