The Process behind Getting a Dental X-Ray

When you hear a dental professional talk about having a dental radiograph, they are referring to an x-ray of your dental region.

There are many different reasons why they may want you to have one of these x-rays completed. They mainly want to get a better look at a potential problem that they believe exists inside of your mouth. They will be able to figure out the full extent of the problem and be able to suggest a more suitable treatment plan.

The diagnoses will be more accurate and subsequently the recovery time can be decreased. Some common reasons why you will be sent for a dental x-ray include identifying any hidden structures in the dental region, benign or malignant masses, cavities and loss of bone.

How Does It Work?

The image is produced after a burst of x-ray radiation is released and is used to penetrate the dental regions, before bouncing and striking off the film. As the teeth cannot be penetrated as well as tissue and muscle, they will look lighter on the image.

Any infections and damage will appear as darker regions on the image as these areas will be easier to penetrate than healthy ones.  There is no need to worry too much about the radiation exposure, as it is a very small amount and steps are taken to reduce the exposure even further.

Why You Need To Get a Dental X-ray

It can be very easy for a dental professional to miss out on some problem in your mouth as it is hiding in hard to reach areas. They may also underestimate the extent of a problem. This is why getting a dental x-ray can be important. You will be able to nip problems in the bud before they cause a lot of pain, as well as wasting time and money.

The Importance Of The Dental Scan

One of the most important aspects of dealing with a dental problem is to get to the root cause of an issue and to take a comprehensive look at what is happening inside of a patient’s mouth.

While a visual inspection by a dental professional is often adequate for a simple check-up, if there is any evidence of caries or other signs of dental damage or problems, the issue needs to be investigated further and in more depth with the aid of a dental scan.

If you leave a problem go on the long finger or let a small issue go undetected, you could be in a lot of trouble down the line. It will be more painful, take more of your time and will also cost more to rectify the problem.

In the past, dental professionals would have to make do with general medical scanning machinery if they wanted to take an image of a patient’s mouth. It is only a couple of decades since there was specialised dental imaging equipment developed. This allowed the professionals to get a much better idea of what is happening inside of a patient’s mouth.

Another leap in the dental imaging technology came only in recent years with the development of cone beam computed tomography, which allows for three dimensional images, something that was never previously possible.

This has resulted in doctors being able to make more accurate diagnoses as they can get a comprehensive look at the teeth, bones, nerve pathways and soft tissues of the mouth and test out how all of these are reliant on one another.

This means that an implant specialist for example will now how to put in place implants in the best way, doctors will see the full extent of problems and be able to create effective treatments for the specific case at hand.

What Is Involved With A Dental CT Scan

When you need to get a dental CT scan, your dental professional needs to get a better idea of what exactly is taking place within your dental region.  It is specialised dental imaging equipment that is used when the normal types of dental x-rays are not up to the task at hand and a more in depth look is needed.

It is used in order to create an image that is three dimensional and takes a picture of your teeth, bones, nerve pathways and soft tissues, all in a single shot.

When a dental professional wants to see the extent of a problem, or they want to find out how the patient’s mouth is structured, they will use this type of scan. This allows them to make more accurate diagnoses, plan out their procedures and come up with more effective treatment techniques. This hopefully translates into less pain and recovery time for the patient in question.

This technology is only fairly recent in the world of dental imaging, thanks to developments in technology, such as cone beam tomography technology. This has only recently allowed you to get three dimensional images of the entire dental region, all in one go. The SimPlant software that is used in order to interpret the image and to navigate it is very specialised and advanced. It is perfect for the job at hand.

How Do You Prepare For The Scan?

There is nothing you really need to do in order to prepare for a dental CT scan. Always ensure that you turn up to the facility with plenty of time to spare as you will more than likely have to fill out some sort of paperwork. Make sure that the clothes you are wearing are comfortable and you are not wearing any jewellery.