X-Rays are a crucial part of any dental care treatment plan. Parkcrest Dental Group explains why dental X-rays are important and their role in your dental care.
What Do X-Rays Do?
An x-ray is an electromagnetic wave of high energy that is able to pass through soft tissues (like your cheeks) and be absorbed by dense tissue (like your teeth). Teeth and bone are very dense, so they absorb X-rays, while X-rays pass more easily through gums and cheeks. X-rays allow dentists to see the inside of your teeth and assist dentists in diagnosing potential problems in a patient’s mouth before they become bigger issues.
These X-rays allow dentists to:
- Find cavities
- Look at the tooth roots
- Check the health of the bony area around the tooth
- Determine if periodontal disease is an oral care issue
- See the status of developing teeth
- Monitor good tooth health through prevention
Related Post: Children and Dental X-Rays
Are There Different Kinds Of X-Rays?
X-rays are divided into two main categories, intraoral and extraoral. An intraoral is an X-ray that is taken of the inside of the mouth. An extraoral X-ray is taken outside of the mouth.
Intraoral X-rays are most commonly used in dentistry. They give a very detailed image of the tooth, bone and supporting tissues of the mouth. While there are two main genres of X-Rays, there are many different types of X-Rays a dentist can order for a patient. Some of the most common X-Rays include:
Bite-Wing: This X-Ray looks at one specific area of your mouth. Each bitewing captures the exposed part of your upper and lower teeth as well as half of their roots and supporting bone. This X-Ray helps detect signs of tooth decay.
Full-Mouth: This X-Ray is taken when you first go to the dentist so they can capture what your mouth looks like initially. These are also used to look for mouth tumors, cysts, and to work on root canals.
Panoramic: This X-Ray looks at the entire view of the patient’s mouth all in one image.
Periapical: An X-Ray that captures the entire view of a tooth. This type of X-Ray shows everything from the crown of the tooth to the root.
Occlusal: This X-Ray tracks the development of a section of teeth and how they are set. They’re mainly used in pediatric patients to track teeth that haven’t pushed through the gums yet.
Let Parkcrest Dental Take Care Of Your Teeth
At Parkcrest Dental, patients are always treated to the highest standard. We always use X-Rays to determine the best dental treatments to fit your specific needs. Interested in trying a new dentist or making a first-time visit? Contact us today at our Springfield, MO location.
