Dental x-ray examination is an important routine examination method for the diagnosis of oral and maxillofacial diseases, which can provide very useful supplementary information for clinical examination. However, many patients often worry that taking X-rays will cause radiation damage to the body, which is not good for health. Let’s take a look at dental x ray together!
What is the purpose of taking a dental X-ray?
Routine x-rays can determine the health status of the root and periodontal support tissue, understand the number, shape and length of the root, whether there is root fracture, root canal filling and so on. In addition, dental radiographs can often detect caries in clinically concealed parts such as the proximal surface of the teeth, the neck of the tooth, and the root of the tooth.
What are the common dental X-rays?
The most common X-rays in dentistry include apical, occlusal, and annular X-rays. In addition, common imaging tests related to radiation doses, as well as dental 3D computed tomography.
The common purpose of visiting a dentist is to clean the teeth, to check, and to treat. When do I need an X-ray of my teeth? Experts explained that after looking at the condition of the mouth, dental history, and cleaning habits, if you suspect a dental problem that cannot be confirmed with the naked eye, you need to take a dental X-ray, or even a dental 3D computer tomography scan to comprehensively confirm the problem, so as to order. Make an appropriate treatment plan.
When some children start to change their teeth, the permanent teeth erupt abnormally, or when teenagers start to grow wisdom teeth, sometimes they need to confirm the condition of all teeth, and they need to take occlusal films or ring X-rays. If you hit a tooth due to trauma, you will need to take an apical or occlusal film to assist in the diagnosis and decide the follow-up treatment, and a follow-up examination is often required to observe the follow-up changes after the injury.
The apical, occlusal and annular X-ray films have different image ranges and finesse. When the range is smaller, the finerness will be better, and the larger the range, the worse the fineness. In principle, if you want to see a few teeth carefully, you should take an apical X-ray. If you want to see more teeth, consider taking an occlusal X-ray. If you want to see the whole mouth, consider taking a ring X-ray.
So when do you need to take a dental 3D CT scan? The disadvantage of dental 3D computed tomography is the higher radiation dose, and the advantage is that it can see a wider range of images than ring X-rays. For example: wisdom teeth in the lower jaw, the root of the tooth is sometimes deep, and it may be adjacent to the mandibular alveolar nerve. Before extraction, if a dental 3D computer tomography can be compared, it can be known that there is a gap between the mandibular wisdom tooth and the mandibular alveolar nerve. Correspondence between front and rear, left and right in degree space. Before dental implant surgery, dental 3D computed tomography will also be used for pre-operative evaluation.
In addition, when orthodontic treatment is performed, it is often necessary to understand the main causes of overlying teeth, scowling, and large or small faces, whether it is simply from the teeth or combined with bone problems. At this time, a dental 3D computed tomography scan can be used to see more clearly, if necessary When combined with orthognathic surgery to change the structure of the bones, it is also possible to understand the direction of the mandibular alveolar nerve and evaluate the impact on the airway space after surgery to formulate a more complete treatment plan.
Do dental X-rays emit a lot of radiation to the human body?
Compared with other radiographic examinations, oral X-ray examinations have very few rays. For example, a small tooth film examination only takes 0.12 seconds, while a CT examination takes 12 minutes, and penetrates more body tissues. Therefore, oral X-ray examinations are suitable for Physical damage is minimal. Experts pointed out that there is no scientific basis for the risk of non-malignant meningiomas in oral X-ray examinations, and at the same time, the equipment currently used has a good protective function. The dose of X-rays for taking dental films is very small, but it should be used according to the indications, such as apical inflammation, periodontal disease requiring surgery, and oral X-rays when teeth are straightened. If the examination is refused due to the need for oral X-ray assisted treatment, it may lead to the inability to correctly grasp the position during the treatment process, thus affecting the treatment effect.
Post time: Mar-25-2022
