What Makes Digital X-Rays Better?
Here at Boulder Dental Designs, we make every effort to provide our patients with the latest and greatest in terms of dental technology. We believe that in order to be the best dentist office possible, we need to be able to provide the best services possible and make sure that our patients are able to trust us to be able to identify any issues that may crop up in relation to their oral health. For decades, dentists have been taking x-rays of people’s mouth in order to assess the health of their teeth and gums. In today’s post, we are going to talk about digital x-rays as they relate to the field of dentistry, the benefits they offer, and why we feel they are better than traditional x-rays. Continue reading below to learn more.
What are Digital X-Rays?
To understand digital x-rays, we first need to put them into some context and compare them to traditional x-rays. X-rays, in the traditional sense, are a type of radiograph that allows medical professionals to look beyond the surface of the teeth and gums in order to get an idea of what is going on with the underlying structures of the teeth. While x-rays are considered safe, they do expose patients to small amounts of radiation. Digital x-rays, on the other hand, offer the same results as traditional x-rays and, below, we have listed out a few of the additional benefits that they deliver. Â
- Less Radiation: When it comes to x-rays, it is impossible to avoid all radiation. Radiation is necessary for the x-ray process to work and without it, no images would be able to be captured. With this in mind, it is important to note that digital x-rays us about 80 percent less radiation than normal x-rays to achieve the same results. Reducing the amount of radiation that our patients are exposed to not only makes them feel more comfortable but is better for the health of everyone who enters our office.
- Comfort: Chances are good that every person reading this blog has had x-rays taken of their teeth before. X-rays are one of the most popular methods that dentists use to ensure that a child’s teeth are coming in correctly and that no major teeth issues crop up when the child’s permanent teeth are developing. Because of this, most people understand just how uncomfortable traditional x-rays can be. In almost every case, the patient is required to wear a heavy lead bib to protect their body from radiation exposure and also have to bite down on x-rays papers that can cut into the gums and cheek. With digital x-rays, a small sensor is used in lieu of paper. This sensor is connected to a computer via a thin wire and can be placed in various areas of the mouth to make sure that the best images possible are captured. This makes digital x-rays far more comfortable and less intrusive than traditional x-rays.
- Image Quality: One of the worst things about traditional x-rays in the dental field, is the fact that image quality can vary greatly from x-ray to x-ray. Because traditional x-rays make use of physical film to capture the image, they are subject to human error in the developing process and can easily be over or underexposed. Digital x-rays suffer from no such drawbacks because they do not make use of physical film to display their images, the amount of human error is greatly reduced. Additionally, digital x-rays allow for the images to be seen almost instantly on a connected display, reducing the amount of time that it takes a dentist to make an assessment based on the x-rays. Finally, digital x-ray images can be resized into larger or smaller images, further increasing their usefulness in diagnostics.
Thank you for taking the time to read our short blog on the benefits of digital x-rays. If you would like to learn more about this dental service or you would like to learn more about our Boulder dentist office, please contact us today by giving us a call at (303)-500-5488 or filling out our contact form on our website. We will work with you to come up with the best oral health plan we can and help make sure that your smile is as healthy as possible.
