Digital Radiographs (x-rays) – Pros and Cons
There is an enormous amount of controversy about dental radiographs today – I wish to give insight into both the pros and cons in relation to a relatively new technology in the world of dental radiography…
Digital radiography is becoming more and more popular in the dental field for various reasons… there are several pros and cons which I will further discuss.
Pros
– digital radiographs use 90{a203a0584dc97c7b9704318f4c19fbc196799bad970e89ff52d38643b6e30189} less radiation as opposed to traditional radiography, hence eliminating the discouragement from patients to take the xrays
– digital radiographs will appear on the computer screen immediately after exposure, reducing the wait time for development… which is crucial in emergency situations
– the large radiographs are great for co-diagnosis (including the patient in the diagnosis process) because they can personally identify the problem with the dentist, allowing them to further understand the issue at hand
– the dental professional does not need to work with the chemicals used to process and develop the radiographs traditionally
– manipulation of images is quite easy (reducing or increasing contrast to better view the issue at hand, etc.)
Cons
– ultimately the cost is more expensive for the dental professional… therefore it may be harder to find a dentist that is in fact using this technology
– because the technology uses a sensor as opposed to film, it may be slightly more uncomfortable for the patient to tolerate
– as mentioned above as a PRO… manipulation of images can also be misconstrued as fraud – changing the image may not portray the TRUE radiograph, which can be used in falsified claims
Overall, in my professional opinion as a Registered Dental Hygienist, if you are going to have any dental radiographs taken, digital is the way to go – less radiation is of utmost importance. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, so long as you do your own research and you are happy with what you find, you will be fine.
You can rest assured that if digital is what you choose, you can find it at Florence Dentistry.
