Digital X-Rays: Providing Clearer Images for Better Dental Treatment

X-rays or radiographs have been an important component of disease diagnosis. This aims to facilitate dentists with effective treatment options with optimal outcomes. With innovative advances in technology, x-rays have now been digitized.  

The general dentist in Sacramento and their expert team offer comprehensive diagnosis through digital X-rays owing to a variety of benefits offered by them. Read on to know why digital X-rays are increasingly popular in modern dentistry. 

Understanding digital X-rays

Digital X-rays are a form of advanced radiography that uses digital sensors instead of traditional radiographic films to capture data during the patient examination directly. This data is then processed, converted, and transferred to a computer system. Digital X-rays are essential diagnostic tools in modern dentistry that provide valuable information that is not easily visible to the naked eye during routine dental exams.

Digital X-rays can reveal:

• Tooth and root positions
• Abnormal root morphology  
• Problems inside a tooth or below the gumline
• Amount of bone resorption
• The presence of abscesses (pus-filled pockets), cysts (fluid-filled sacs), or tumors (abnormal growth of tissue mass) within the oral cavity
• The presence of benign (non-cancerous) and malignant (cancerous) lesions
• Interdental tooth decay
• Developmental abnormalities of the teeth or jaws
• Outcomes of procedures like root canal treatment, bone grafting, and dental implants

Benefits of digital X-rays 

Digital X-rays offer several benefits over traditional X-rays. 

Easy access and storage

• You do not require processing films.
• Images are directly transferred and stored in the hard drive.
• Digital images are not subjected to degradation over time
• The images are easily accessible and shared across different doctors. 

Affordable

• There is no need for traditional films and chemical solutions to develop and process them.
• This saves your costs.
• Additionally, there is no exposure to fumes or handling of chemical solutions.

Higher quality images 

• Digital X-rays offer more precision and accuracy in terms of quality and detailing.
• The images can be easily resized without distortion.

Less radiation

• Digital imaging leads to a drastic reduction of radiation and the need for bulky lead aprons. 

Improved communication

• Improved communication is a natural by-product of using digital X-rays.

Digital X-rays are safe diagnostic tools used only when deemed necessary to aid dentists in designing an appropriate treatment plan. These have successfully replaced traditional radiographic imaging saving a lot of time, effort, and of course money! Accuracy and precision enable dentists to diagnose diseases, injuries, and trauma, and design an appropriate treatment plan that usually never fails.