Digital X-rays
At Crosby Dentistry, we care about your overall health and well-being. To provide the best care for our patients, we use diagnostic testing to make accurate diagnoses and monitor how the mouth, jaw, and teeth change and move over time. Our team uses digital X-rays to get a better look at what is happening inside the body. With digital X-rays, your results are available quickly with high-quality images that are easy to share and store.
What Is an X-ray?
An X-ray is a diagnostic tool used by doctors and dentists alike. An X-ray uses different energy wavelengths to penetrate the body’s soft tissues, stopping when they reach a hard object, like a bone or a tooth. The wave is then bounced back to an imaging device and the inverse image appears. X-rays are a fast and valuable tool that allows dentists to get an inside view of your body. By looking at bones and teeth through an X-ray, dentists can provide better overall health care.
Why Are X-rays Needed?
X-rays are needed to help give our team a complete view of what is happening under your skin and tissue. Not only are X-rays informative for diagnosis, but they are also helpful in creating a baseline image of your mouth, teeth, and gums. X-rays are commonplace and are taken every few years so that we can monitor how your bones are growing and developing or how your teeth may be shifting and moving over time.
Dr. Crosby may also take a specific X-ray to determine the placement, development, or growth of a particular tooth or bone. X-rays can pinpoint an injury’s exact location or help detect decay or bone deterioration.
What Are the Benefits of Digital X-rays?
Traditionally, X-rays were only taken using an antiquated film. Many chemicals and reagents were required to develop the film, making the process complicated and time-consuming. X-rays were also bulky and hard to transport from one place to another. Thankfully, new technology has made digital X-rays common in medical and dental offices worldwide.
Digital X-rays have several benefits, including:
- Faster processing time
- Easy storage and transport
- Improved image quality
- Quick image sharing
- Easier developing process
With digital X-rays, our team can see and interpret your results almost instantly with accurate imaging and easy storage. Faster results mean you get the diagnosis and treatment you need quickly.
Are X-rays Safe?
Many patients are concerned about exposure to radiation when undergoing an X-ray, and for a good reason. In high doses, radiation can be extremely dangerous. However, the amount of radiation emitted from a single X-ray is minimal. The American College of Radiology has determined that about 10,000 X-rays over a lifetime are still within a safe and acceptable range for radiation.
We like to take new digital X-rays about once per year at our dental office, unless another diagnostic testing is needed. Don’t worry — the process is easy, quick, and completely pain-free. X-rays help tell us how your mouth moves and changes over a year so we can get a better idea of your overall health.
Crosby Dentistry has invested in state-of-the-art technology to provide our patients with safe, effective dental care and diagnoses. Contact our office with any questions or concerns — we’ll be happy to discuss your treatment options.