If you have visited the dentist in the past, chances are you have had dental X-rays taken. These X-rays give dental professionals a lot of information about your teeth, gums, and jaw bone that they may not have seen with their eyes.
Dental X-rays are very useful and safe. Nowadays digital X-rays are replacing traditional film X-rays and we know they emit about 80% less radiation than traditional film X-rays. This amount of radiation emitted by digital X-rays is extremely low and harmless.
It is important for patients to know that the amount of radiation from a series of digital X-rays is less than the amount that they are exposed to by the Earth, appliances, and the sun in one day naturally. Our office also records patient X-rays and has them saved in the chart so we never will unnecessarily expose patients to X-rays that can be avoided.
Since the X-rays are digital they come up immediately on the screen. This saves loads of time for dental professionals as well as for patients. For these reasons, our dentists are only using digital X-rays.
There are two different forms of X-rays, intraoral and extraoral. In one case, with intraoral X-rays, the dental professional is looking at the health of the teeth, gums, roots, and the jaw bone holding the teeth in place. For the extraoral x-ray, the focus is more on larger elements of the face and jaw bones.
This includes the temporomandibular joint “TMJ,” the sinus, impacted wisdom teeth, growth and development, jaw fractures, and more.
Depending on your health and dental history, the frequency of when we are taking X-rays may change. X-rays are a vital, important diagnostic tool that confirms whether or not harmful bacteria are hiding in the teeth, under the gums, or even on the roots of the teeth. The earlier that the dental professional can identify a problem, the easier it will be to fix it for both you as the patient and the dentist. Without dental x-rays, problems will get increasingly worse and tougher to treat. In some cases, these problems will also negatively affect your complete health and well-being.
Be sure to talk to your dentist about dental X-rays if you have questions at your next check-up and cleaning. If you are searching for a dentist in the Center City area of Philadelphia, you can call to schedule your free consultation. We look forward to meeting you soon!