Digital Radiography
Dorchester, MA
 Dental experts at Sparkle Dental know that dental radiographs are crucial in ensuring an accurate diagnosis and treatment. The procedure is penetrating the dental profession and replacing traditional radiography technology. Through this method, our experts produce digital radiographic images of your dental structure to detect teeth problems with greater precision. In addition, digital radiography allows us to digitally document your dental history and design your treatment plan.
How It Works
In place of the traditional photographic x-ray, we use a digital x-ray sensor to record images of your mouth and teeth. We may opt for one of the three common methods. When we use the direct method, we place a sensor inside your mouth to capture images of a part of your dental structure. With the indirect method, the traditional photographic x-ray is taken, scanned and converted to a digital radiograph that allows us to view your dental structure on a computer. The semi-indirect method combines the two methods.
Our specialist may describe digital radiography by focusing on the target area of the tooth structure. When we focus on a specific area of the mouth, we will speak about an intraoral x-ray where the sensor is placed on the targeted teeth. We may, instead, talk of a digital panoramic x-ray when we use the sensor to capture your full dental arch in the same image.
Why We Use Digital Radiography
The main reason our specialists opt for digital radiography is its effectiveness in detecting dental problems. We prefer digital radiography to traditional dental x-rays because the first allows us, and the patient, to view images of the dental structure on the computer screen and with higher resolution. This means that we can manipulate the image to focus on target points of the tooth structure and closely study oral problems manifesting on the radiograph.
Since the information about the patient's oral health is in digital form, direct sharing can be done between our clinic and the patient's insurance company. Digital radiographs are also easier to share with a specialized dentist when referrals are made.
Compared to film x-ray, digital radiography requires less radiation to produce radiographs of similar or better quality. This means that the patient's exposure to radiation is reduced by a great percentage, up to 70%.
Digital radiography enables us to measure the length, area, and angle of your tooth structure. We use the 3D images from this measurement to come up with better diagnosis and treatment plans. 3D images are especially helpful in diagnosing and understanding the severity of dental malformations, tooth damage from traumatic experiences such as car accidents, and dental cancers. The images are also a crucial guide when planning and performing dental surgeries.
Because teamwork is an essential practice in our clinic, digital radiography allows our dental specialists to consult about the condition of a patient even when one of the team members is out of office. Thanks to digital radiography, we can file your records in a single digital file, which makes it easier to refer to your case history. Call us at Sparkle Dental at (617) 430-6404 to schedule your convenient appointment. |
