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It’s normal to feel a little hesitant about getting dental X-rays. You might wonder if they’re really necessary or if they expose you to too much radiation. At Dental Specialty Associates of Arizona, we completely understand these concerns.
The good news is that dental X-rays are completely safe, and they play a huge role in keeping your smile healthy. Let’s talk about why they matter and what they help us do for your health.
What Is a Dentist Looking for with New Patient Dental X-Rays?
When you come in for your new patient dental examination in Phoenix or Gilbert, we’ll take a series of diagnostic images and X-rays to check for hidden issues and get a full picture of your oral health. This is especially important if you come to us for the first time during a dental emergency. Here are a few of the key things we’re looking for on your dental X-rays.
Cavities
Cavities don’t always show up on the surface of your teeth where we can see them with a visual exam. X-rays help us see decay forming between teeth or underneath old fillings before it causes major damage.
Tooth decay can also show up on a dental X-ray before it creates a hole in the tooth. In some cases, we can intervene to strengthen these areas and prevent the need for other treatments. In all cases, identifying and treating decay as early as possible is the best way to minimize your discomfort and the expense of your care.
Signs of Advanced Gum Disease
Gum disease doesn’t just affect your gums. It can also cause bone loss in your jaw. X-rays let us see if the bone supporting your teeth is shrinking, which can lead to loose teeth over time. We can also use these images to check on the health of your periodontal ligament, which is the connective tissue that surrounds a tooth root and holds the tooth in the socket. As with cavities, identifying and addressing gum disease early can prevent worse problems and save your smile.
Tartar Deposits Below the Gums
Even if your teeth look clean, tartar can build up below the gumline where you can’t see it. Left untreated, this can lead to gum disease and infection. Your new patient dental X-rays will give our team a clear picture of these hidden tartar deposits, enabling us to make the right recommendations for your hygiene plan. Your hygienist may also take an image after your cleaning to ensure they have completely removed any hidden deposits and prevent potential infections.
Other Issues That Aren’t Visible with the Naked Eye
Some problems don’t show up just by looking in your mouth. X-rays help us detect impacted wisdom teeth, infections, cysts, and even tumors that might otherwise go unnoticed. We also use these images to look for problems with the nerve and blood supply inside each tooth (in areas called the pulp chamber and root canals), as well as the structures inside and surrounding each tooth.
Aside from diagnosing active issues that currently need attention, your new patient X-rays are critical to ensuring the best possible care throughout your time as a patient with Dental Specialty Associates of Arizona.
Your New Patient Dental X-Rays Give Us a Baseline of Your Oral Health
Most importantly, the x-rays and other images we collect at your first visit allow us to create a baseline for future comparison. This helps us track any changes over time and catch potential problems early.
For example, even if your jawbone looks healthy at your first visit, your new patient X-rays give us a way to identify bone loss months or years later. Without this baseline, it can be difficult to properly identify changes to the bone until they have become severe.
Similarly, your new patient X-rays allow us to identify changes to the positions of your teeth, nerve canals, and many other types of abnormalities. In many cases, being able to compare new images to your baseline allows us to take a conservative approach and monitor issues rather than jumping straight to treatment, as well as enabling us to act quickly when prompt treatment is warranted.
Basically, your new patient dental X-rays allow us to do our best possible work in protecting your smile and your overall health.
Are Dental X-Rays Safe?
As you can see, there are many ways your new patient dental x-rays will help us protect your oral health. However, some people worry about radiation exposure from X-rays and wonder if they’re safe. We understand your concerns, and would like to reassure you that these images are incredibly safe.
Modern X-Rays Use Very Little Radiation
Dental x-rays expose you to significantly less radiation than other sources. A dental x-ray uses about 0.005 miliseverts (mSv) of radiation, where a flight from New York to LA exposes you to about 0.03 mSv and a routine mammogram uses about 0.42 mSv.
Our advanced digital X-rays and imaging suite uses a minimal amount of radiation compared to old-fashioned film X-rays. In fact, digital dental X-rays use 80-90% less radiation compared to film. Because we can manipulate the images in the computer (such as changing the contrast), digital imaging also frequently eliminates the need to take multiple images of the same area.
Dental X-Rays Use a Safer Type of Radiation
The type of radiation also makes a big difference. Soft radiation, such as the type used in backscatter imaging machines at airport security checkpoints, interacts with your soft tissues more. This is the type of radiation that’s more dangerous than “hard” radiation, which is the type used in dental x-rays. Hard radiation passes through your soft tissues without much interaction, which is how it gets clear images of your teeth and bones without much interference from your skin or muscle tissue.
Our X-Ray Equipment Has Extensive Safety Measures Built In
Today’s dental X-rays also have significantly better safety measures in place compared to years past. With the X-ray tube lined in lead, lead foil over the cathode (the “lense” of the X-ray camera) to eliminate unnecessary radiation, and a philosophy of only taking X-rays that are needed and important, we minimize your exposure in every possible way. In fact, today’s dental X-ray machines are so safe, the lead aprons are no longer truly necessary! (But don’t worry, we’ll still use one.)
The Risk of Undiagnosed Dental Issues Is Much Greater Than the Risk of Taking Dental X-rays
Radiation exposure from X-rays is extremely low. However, the risk to your health without them is much higher. Undiagnosed dental issues like cavities, gum disease, and infections can lead to serious pain, tooth loss, and even health problems beyond your mouth.
Untreated dental infections can spread to your heart, brain, or other organs, leading to serious health complications including hospitalization and even death. Without images, gum disease can quietly do damage for years, putting strain on your other organ systems and increasing your risks for heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, pancreatic cancer, and many other issues.
While we understand you may feel hesitant about dental X-rays, they are critical to our ability to properly diagnose and address issues and provide the highest standard of care.
Our Team Is Here to Support You Every Step of the Way.
At Dental Specialty Associates of Arizona, it’s our mission to protect your wellness. We also want you to feel comfortable and informed about your dental care. Dental x-rays are an important tool in keeping your smile healthy, but we’re always happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have.
If you’re ready for your new patient visit, schedule an appointment today at our Gilbert or Phoenix location. We look forward to seeing you and helping you achieve a healthier, happier smile!
