Hello, I'm Dr. Vera Salvatore here at Salvatore Dental, and we have a lot of dental questions in regards to dental X-rays and why they're needed. So, I'll take a few moments today and answer some of the most common questions.
When do we take dental X-rays?
The first set of dental X-rays will be taken at your initial first appointment, and that is needed so we can properly diagnose, see if there are any problems, any cavities, your bone level, and if there are problems under the gums or in the bone. So, that is the first time we take our full set of X-rays. After that, a few pictures, only four, are taken once a year. Also, if we are planning a surgery, if we're going to be doing dental implants, those X-rays may be necessary. At that time, we use a different type of X-rays; they're called 3D or CBCT. So, there is a different type of procedure that may require a certain type of X-ray, but usually the X-rays are taken at your first visit, and then once every year.
Why do we need these X-rays?
Dental X-rays are very important because there's only so much we can see with the naked eye or even with what we call Dental Loops or dental glasses. Dental X-rays are needed so that we can see what's going on in between teeth, what is happening under the gums, or inside the bone. Those things we cannot see just with our eyes or with our glasses. But oftentimes, we can detect such things as cavities, infections, buildup under the gums, impacted molar teeth, and wisdom teeth. Sometimes with kids, we don't even know if they have adult teeth underneath them; they may not have an adult tooth, and that's quite important. There are certain types of cancers that we can find with X-rays, and of course, they're vital for planning any big surgery such as implants.
What are the different types of dental X-rays?
There are many different types of dental X-rays. In our office, every single X-ray that we use is digital. There are small, tiny films that go in between your teeth and can see what's happening in between your teeth. There are other films which are also small, but we can see what's happening under the gum and inside the root. There is another really cool X-ray that we use, and that one rotates around your head while it plays nice music, and it allows us to see your jawbone in 3D. So, we can literally look at you from different angles, see where your nerves are coming down, where the blood vessels are, the thickness and density of your bone, which is vital and super important for a nice implant placement.
I'll tell you this: in this day and age, with digital technology, they are so safe. We have a recent American dental regulation that was passed where it is no longer required to wear a lead apron for dental X-rays, even for pregnant females, which is pretty cool considering that in the past we did have film that we had to dip in different solutions and chemicals in order to be processed, and that required much more radiation than the digital does. With digital, we can enlarge your picture, we can change the density. It is quite something compared to what it used to be back in the day. They are so vital that they show what's happening in between teeth or on top of the teeth, how far the cavity extends, are we into the nerve, are we close to the nerve, is there any infection in the bone, do we have an abscess? In terms of gum disease and bone levels, it is crucial and vital that we see how low the bone is or how high it is. If the bone is very low, the foundation of where the tooth sits is not as strong, which will indicate to us that we have to take a different approach to treatment before the patient loses their teeth.
3D X-rays are very important to see if a patient is a candidate for dental implant treatment. Some patients, unfortunately, don't have enough bone to be candidates, or other procedures like bone grafting may be necessary to facilitate proper implant placement. Thus, it is very important when planning for procedures that a 3D X-ray is taken to see the proper placement, where it can go, where it cannot go, and to have the patient fully prepared for their surgery.
We have patients who come in and say, "You know, just give me a dental cleaning. I just want a dental cleaning; I don't need any X-rays." It is so important to take those pictures because oftentimes when we take the X-rays and we see what's happening under the gum line that a naked eye cannot see, we would actually do a big disservice to a patient by just giving them a simple cleaning. Dental X-rays can help us in diagnosing periodontal disease, disease of the gums and bone, and if we see that, if we know that, we do a different treatment altogether. Then, we follow up with a follow-up X-ray to make sure that we did indeed do a good job and remove all of that debris that's hiding under the gum line.
We believe in healthy mouths and the prevention of problems. You know, it is important to see children very early on, as soon as their first teeth start to come in. This way, we can create proper rapport with a child, educate the parent, and set the stage for a life that is cavity-free and disease-free for that child. After that, you know, we see patients every six months for routine care, unless there is work that's needed, or every three months if we're trying to maintain something that's called periodontal disease, the disease of gums and bone.
I hope that I've been able to answer some of your most common questions about dental X-rays. If you have any additional questions, we're here for you; we're here to help. Our phone number is (518) 868-6900, and we're looking forward to meeting you.