Everything You Should Know About Digital Radiography?

Have you noticed any changes in equipment and diagnostic tools your dentist is using? While it may not be obvious to everyone, some people have a keen eye. Dental experts are quickly gravitating toward digital radiography and cutting down on the traditional way of doing things. If you have had your x-ray taken before, you will notice a big difference in how things are being done today in dental offices.

What Is Digital Radiology?

It is a digitalized form of imaging that medical experts use as an advancement to traditional x-rays. The imaging relies on computer-aided technology, so the radiographic images are produced and displayed almost instantly on a computer screen.

How Does Digital Radiology Work?

Digital imaging integrates modern technology in many areas to increase effectiveness. Firstly, it uses digital detector arrays (DDAs) and flat panel detectors to produce high-quality images.

Digital imaging highly relies on computer technology to capture, create, process and display radiographic images. The process begins with converting the absorbed x-ray energy into an electrical charge. This information then undergoes image processing by software, translating it into grayscale images on a computer screen. The attending dentist at Tri-Cities Dental Specialist can then access the images on a screen, using them to make an accurate diagnosis of your health.

Types of Digital Radiology in Dentistry

Technically, there are two types of digital imaging systems used in intraoral radiography. They are:

1. Computed radiography (CR) – uses a photostimulable phosphor (PSP) plate and a laser scanner to capture and create the digital images.

2. Direct radiography (DR) – uses sensors attached to a wire instead of plates. The sensors can either be a charge-coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor. The wire obtains images from the sensor to transfer to the computer.

Is Digital Radiography a Better Option in Modern Dentistry?

There must be something worthwhile about digital radiography if the best dentists in Coquitlam, BC, are using it for diagnostic tests. Some of the benefits of digital radiography are:

1. Reduce image noise – is the fine detail variation that can either be statistical or structural. Image noise should be absent on radiographic images as it can affect the quality.

2. Environmental-friendly – digital imaging calls for reduced chemical processing and maintenance, which benefits the environment.

3. Convenience – one of the reasons why many dentists in Coquitlam are opting for digital imaging in their dental clinics is the convenience of using little space. Dentists do not need to create extra room in their space for a darkroom since digital images do not need processing. Besides, since you do not need to develop film to store image data, you will not need a storage filing system in your dental clinic.

4. Better image quality – digital imaging produces by far a higher image quality than traditional imaging that relies on film. The heightened detail detectability gives dental experts an easier time focusing more keenly on small cavities or tiny oral fractures that may be easy to miss on traditional film imaging.

5. Image flexibility and versatility – today, dental experts can enjoy more image versatility when dealing with digital imaging due to the incorporation of computer systems. They can zoom in and out, rotate, flip, invert or even change the brightness of the digital images. The flexibility to shift back and forth from dark-on-light imaging to light-on-dark imaging gives periodontists in Coquitlam an easier time identifying soft tissue complications and oral infections like gum disease.

6. Immediate results – patients do not have to go through the inconvenience of moving from one room to the other to get their radiographic images processed. The digitalized imaging system captures and immediately delivers the images to the computer without needing an intermediate cassette. This feature means more to patients who need a quick diagnosis for urgent care treatment.

7. Ease of transfer – dental experts have an easier time transferring images to their patients because everything is digitized. Better yet, you do not need to hassle too much to relay information from one dental expert to the other. You can always share digital copies of your radiographic images to share your medical records.