Dental Radiographs are more commonly known as x-rays and an important part of any dental treatment. If you are experiencing pain or discomfort a dental x-ray will help the dentist diagnose the problem. Dental x-rays can also be preventative too, by helping the dentist diagnose early stages of decay or leaking within existing fillings before they become problematic.
Preventative x-rays are to be taken every 2 years as recommended by the Australian Dental Association. Doing this allows the dentist to see the overall health and wellbeing of all your teeth and other areas that are not visible to the naked eye. Your dentist will always keep you informed if a dental x-ray is at all required.
An intraoral x-ray is the most common type of radiograph required in dentistry, as they show a high level of detail to the tooth, bone and supporting tissue of the mouth. This type of x-ray allows the dentist to:
This dental x-ray is an example of a “bitewing” x-ray showing some molar and premolar teeth. A bitewing is a type of “intra-oral” x-ray, meaning the film is placed inside the patient’s mouth.
Another type of x-ray we often ask our patients to have done is a panoramic x-ray. We refer to this as a full mouth x-ray as it shows the entire mouth on a single x-ray. This includes all teeth and bone of your upper and lower jaw. This type of x-ray allows the dentist to: