Digital dental X-rays are a foundational oral health practice for every dental patient. Though they are routine, the importance of dental X-rays in preventative dentistry is not to be underestimated. We understand some patients may have lingering worries about this medical tool. Our guide aims to highlight the crucial role this imaging plays in keeping your smile healthy and radiant.
The Importance of Dental X-Rays in Preventative Dentistry
Oral health issues do not only occur on the surfaces of your teeth. While your dentist can typically spot decay with only a visual exam, other issues go deeper.
The importance of dental X-rays lies in three key elements:
- Detailed imaging
- Tracking your dental health
- A high safety profile
X-Rays Provide Detailed Images
X-rays allow your dentist to peer through the physical materials of your mouth to obtain a clear picture of your oral health. Decay tends to pop up first in hard-to-reach areas of the mouth. It is no coincidence that the places that are hard to brush and clean are the same that are hard to see.
Within a matter of seconds, your dentist can take X-rays that provide a comprehensive look at your teeth and gums. This allows them to catch decay in its earliest stages before your teeth pay the price.
Additionally, X-rays help with more than spotting decay. Dental X-rays can also:
- Evaluate your child’s adult teeth before they grow in, checking for any abnormalities.
- Check for wisdom teeth position or impaction.
- Provide a complete picture of a tooth damaged from an injury
- Check for tumors, cysts, or other growths
A Timeline of Oral Health
Physical exams may catch decay and issues, but they do not leave behind records. As good as your dentist is, they likely cannot remember every detail of every mouth. Medical records like X-rays allow your dentist a copy to refer back to when managing patient conditions and health.
By keeping visual records, your dentist can better spot any changes to your teeth. These changes can then point to risks for conditions. Knowing your risk factors then guides preventative measures to stop problems before they arise.
Additionally, patients rarely see the same dentist for their entire lives. Dentists can readily send medical records to another practice to ensure a seamless transition of care. Otherwise, you would need to start all over, meaning more time (and money) spent.
The Safety of Dental X-Rays
When people learn that X-rays require the use of radiation, they may understandably grow hesitant. Films and television have highlighted the dangers of radiation for decades. While vast amounts of radiation are dangerous, the damage it can do exists on a sliding scale.
Radiation is constantly around us, coming from the sun, the depths of space, and even bananas. However, the type and amount are what matter. For example, those bananas, while technically radioactive, are negligibly so. Excess solar radiation, though, can burn your skin and even cause cancer.
Dental X-rays use a small amount of radiation to create images of your teeth. In comparison, you are exposed to almost 40 times the amount of radiation in a single flight from California to New York. You would not want a dental X-ray every day, but the occasional X-ray exam will not place you at any significant risk.
Why Preventative Dentistry?
What is better: the problem you have or the problem you prevent? Except for perhaps the rare exception, most people prefer the latter. Even minor oral health problems can build up over time, causing wear to your teeth and gums.
Most patients need dental X-rays only once per year. However, you may also need them if something unexpected happens. For example, a traumatic injury to the face may lead to damage within the gums and require imaging tests.
Without preventative measures, small problems rapidly become big ones. Then, big ones become huge ones. With each successive step, the treatments also scale up, requiring more complex fixes and costing more. Protect your time, money, and peace of mind by taking every preventative measure you can.
Routine Care with Experts
Alta Dental Care is proud to serve as a leading dentist in Upland, providing preventative care for patients of all ages.