Dental X-rays

At Holistic Dental Associates, we use DIGITAL x-rays. They use 95% less radiation than conventional X-rays, so they are much safer for patients of all ages. Our goal is to provide you with a comfortable and safe experience when having x-rays taken.  

We use 2 types of x-rays in our dental office. The first kind is what is known as a conventional dental x-ray. It is 2 dimensional, and is an image that enables us to see underneath the surface of teeth and gums. These images can help us to see decay, infections, impacted teeth, bone loss and many other oral-related problems.

The second type of x-ray we do is a CBCT, also known as a 3D Scan. With a CBCT, we can screen for potential cysts or tumors, areas of prior extraction sites that might not have healed properly, TMJ shape and health, and we can see what the airway looks like.

The main reason you would need dental x-rays is because in many cases, a visual examination just isn't enough. There may be a lot of things going on below the surface of your teeth and gums and we won't be able to see anything without the help of an x-ray. Some of the different things that we can see on a 2 dimensional x-ray include underlying tooth decay, root infections, bone loss and impacted wisdom teeth. A CBCT 3D Scan also allows us to see cysts and tumors and potential malignancies, the health of the TMJ area, as well as screen for airways and hidden infections that might not be visible on a 2 dimensional x-ray. For children, x-rays allow us to monitor development and growth of permanent teeth.

Rather than do less than stellar work, we found a solution to the radiation. We give our patients Delta Tocotrienol (a form of vitamin E that has been WELL studied to reverse the damage from ionizing radiation). We give them an X-Ray Homeopathic as well.  So we do what we can to mitigate the radiation. But we would be 100% remiss if we left cement or tartar sitting under the gum for months. Our goal is always to provide excellent care. And we are not X-ray happy. But we DO insist on doing excellent work - even if it means taking an extra one to make absolutely sure that we are doing our absolute BEST for our patients. Because our patients deserve the very best that we can give! There are DOZENS of studies on Pubmed that show that Delta Tocotrienol reverses the damage done by ionizing radiation. We hope that this has explained better the necessity of the x-rays, as well as giving you a solution to mitigate the damage from Ionizing radiation. We always try to present a solution to a problem when addressing it, so that our patients don't feel like they are stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Why do we take post operative X-rays?

Let's talk about post operative x-rays, and WHY we do them. Some people don't want x-rays at all, and that simply won't work in even a biological dental office. It is standard of care to take pre-operative x-rays. But many offices don't take post operative ones - not for crowns, fillings or even with periodontal treatments like scaling and root planing. Which is insane, because how much damage can happen if there is something foreign sitting in the gums for months? These are two partial x-rays from the same patient, who gave us permission to share the x-rays without any identifying marks. We seated a crown on the patient's tooth, and we took a post operative x-ray to make sure we had removed all of the excess cement. And the little ledge in the red circle was still there. It took us several tries to ensure that we had gotten that little ledge of cement off. We flossed. We cleaned with a scaler. It FELT fine with the floss and didn't shred it. But when we took the second x-ray, it was still there. So Why take the extra x-ray to make sure we got that chunk of cement off? Because leaving that ledge of cement there WILL cause periodontal problems over time. THIS is why we do take them. Because at the end of the day, you don't know if you don't check. MEASURED MATTERS! Period. And it's NOT ok to just leave stuff sitting in the gums for months on end until the next time a patient gets x-rays - for some people, that could be years, because not everyone is diligent about getting their dental visits in every 3-6 months. So we found a solution to the radiation, rather than accepting less than perfect in terms of our standard of care.

We give our patients Delta Tocotrienol (a form of vitamin E that has been WELL studied to reverse the damage from ionizing radiation). We give them an X-Ray Homeopathic as well. So we do what we can to mitigate the radiation. But we would be 100% remiss if we left cement sitting under the gum for months. Our goal is always to provide excellent care. And we are not X-ray happy. But we DO insist on doing excellent work - even if it means taking an extra one to make absolutely sure that we are doing our absolute BEST for our patients. Because our patients deserve the very best that we can give! There are DOZENS of studies on Pubmed that show that Delta Tocotrienol reverses the damage done by ionizing radiation. We believe it's also important to take it when traveling, or if out in the sun for longer periods of time. Or if you are around electronics all the time (because who isn't in today's day and age?) We hope that this has explained better the necessity of the xrays, as well as giving you a solution to mitigate the damage from Ionizing radiation. We always try to present a solution to a problem when addressing it, so that our patients don't feel like they are stuck between a rock and a hard place.

If you would like to learn more about x-rays and how they're taken, call us today and we will be happy to further assist you.