11 Apr 2016 What is a Dental Cone CT X-Ray? And Why Do I Need It.
Learning about the Dental Cone CT Machine
If you’re a patient of a dentist in Salt Lake City, Utah is you were told you need a cone beam CT scan taken, you might think you’re going to take part in some type of science fiction experiment. Technology is always improving and many dentists in Salt Lake City are taking advantage of what the cone beam CT machines are able to offer their patients. Here at Holladay Family Dentistry we want to educate you on the benefits and uses of this type of machine. We want you to know what is being done, why it is being done, how it is being done and what to expect. In short, we want you, our patients, to know about it before hand.
What is a Dental Cone CT X-Ray?
The dental cone CT machine takes x-rays in a little different way. The x-rays of the machine are divergent and form a cone. Traditional CT x-rays are flat and linear. The cone shape provides a better image for Salt Lake City dentists when they are putting in dental implants. A traditional medical CT will show consecutive slices of an image. The cone beam CT will produce images that have more volume.
Cone Beam CT has been used in the United States only since 2001. Since it was first introduced, the dental profession has found it to be very useful in the use of dental implants and orthodontics. The images dentists get from these scans allow them to create implants that fit and work better for the patients.
How is it used?
The cone beam CT is done before the implants are made and put in. They are used for the planning and the assessment of the patient for implants. It is also used to provide images for orthodontics. The images created by the cone beam CT is not distorted in any way. It can provide a true and accurate representation of the orientation, structure and type of teeth that need to be dealt with.
Some dental offices may have a cone beam CT machine in their office, but many in Salt Lake City will send the person to have the images taken at an outside imaging center that can perform many types of diagnostic x-ray testing. The results of the images are sent to the dentist so they can be used.
The Benefits of Cone Beam CT
In order to convince some people that they should embrace this technology, it is a good idea to learn what the benefits of the cone beam CT machines are. There are several to learn about.
- The cone beam CT exposes an individual to as much as 10 times less x-ray radiation than a conventional CT machine.
- A cone beam CT scan is completed is as few as 10 seconds and no more than 40 seconds in most cases. That compared to the several minutes of a traditional CT scan.
- It can cost half as much for a cone beam CT than it does for a traditional CT.
- When you combine the speed, the cost and the quality of the images along with the lesser exposure to dangerous radiation, it is easy to see why the dentists in Salt Lake City are turning to this technology to help them give their patients the best of care.