I had two old mercury amalgam fillings that I've been wanting removed for several years, but other, more-pressing issues kept coming up. I also wanted them removed properly, not just drilled out the way it used to be done. This dentist has all the latest equipment and is trained in safe mercury removal. (He's the second dentist I've met who has developed mercury toxicity due to his dental practice.) That meant that both he and his assistant wore respirators (they look like gas masks), there was oxygen flowing into the room throughout the drilling, I had on an oxygen mask, and there was a plastic piece in my mouth to help seal out mercury particles and vapor. All this may seem like overkill, but there is a growing number of dentists and patients who think it's the better approach.