Written By Joanne F. Breckenridge Administrative Dental Assistant

If you are like most people your life is very busy. It can even be hectic at times. You could be due or even past due for your next dental cleaning and not even realize it. As a patient of By the Sea Dentistry when you come in to our office for your next visit we are excited to show you big changes. Dr. Michel has gone digital, our office is now equipped in all operatories with digital radiography systems. One of the many reasons why Dr. Michel has upgraded to this sys­tem is to be able to provide the best dental care possible for his patients.

For most people when they need to have an x-ray taken they are concerned about radiation exposure. Patients can now rest assured that with digital radi­ography you are not increasing your exposure, in fact you are actually decreasing you exposure to radiation. Having a digital x-ray taken opposed to the tradi­tional way you will receive 70% to 80% less exposure to radia­tion. Less radiation to the patient will incline them to allow us to take the necessary x-rays. This in return allows Dr. Michel, your dentist, to be better able to treat­ment plan your personal dental needs. As your dental provider we ask your permission to take x-rays to be better able to find problem areas that can be but are not limited to: areas of decay, abscess, bone loss, and also unerupted teeth in children and adults.

After the x-ray is taken you will be able to see it almost instantaneously on the monitor. At that time we have the ability to change the contrast lighter or darker as needed without taking another picture. We can also enlarge the image for more accurate diag­nosis. In fact with digital x-rays cracks and fractures in the teeth are more visible to the eye then the traditional film.

By switching to digital systems we are wasting less thus making our office more enviromentally friendly. There will be no more need for the traditional films that were used. Now we have one film that is continually used for each picture taken in your mouth. No need for a machine to process the x-rays as it will all be done via computer. With no need for the x-ray processor there will be less chemical waste and less pollution. With the traditional x-ray processor we would have to change chemicals weekly and also wait 5 minutes for the films to be processed and developed. Once they come out of the machine they need to be put together on the X-ray mounts. This is all precious time that you lose with your dental provider that will not happen anymore. Now you will see the last x-ray on the monitor before the next picture is even taken. The new large monitors are an important luxury; previously the x-rays were viewed on a small light box. Digital X-ray units are truly revolutionizing our office. This is greatest advancement in radiography that will ben­efit the dentist and patient since the first x-ray was taken.

The convenience of digital x-rays does not stop at the dental chair. With any insurance claims or referrals we make to a dental special­ist we can send your x-ray via the computer and inter­net. An example is that we need to refer a patient out to an oral surgeon. Besides Dr. Michel calling the special­ist to speak about the patient’s dental needs, our front office staff can have the x-ray sent, received and being reviewed by both doctors as they are speaking on the phone. This eliminates the need to mail the x-ray and taking the risk of it not being present in time for the patient’s scheduled appointment. This will help enable better com­munication between your dental practitioners. If there was a case that an insurance company was to request further x-rays we can send them via the computer and they would have to them in their possession instantly. This allows the front desk staff to have faster response time with filed dental claims.

Dr. Michel and his staff at By the Sea Dentistry are very excited to be able to provide this technol­ogy as it will help us provide our patients with the best care dental possible.