Advanced Technology

Big Smiles Pediatric Dentistry now uses digital dental X-rays much like the traditional X-rays that was previously used in most clinics and still used in 70% of dentist offices because the new digital x-ray equipment is a substantial investment.

When using the new digital X-rays, the dentist will place a sensor inside your mouth that will take pictures of your teeth. It resembles the film that was used before, but the digital sensor is connected to a computer. After the x-ray has been shot, that image shows up on a screen so that the dentist can review it immediately.

There are benefits with the new digital x-rays. The patient is exposed to much less radiation; 90% less than the old x-ray films.

Digital x-rays can make your dentist appointment shorter. You no longer must sit and wait while the x-ray film must develop. Not so with the digital x-rays as the sensor makes it show up on the screen immediately.

Digital x-rays are different than the standard x-rays were because the standard version was too small to view well. With the new digital they can be magnified or enlarged to look closely at the structure of your tooth. The dentist can adjust the contrast, brightness, and color of the image to enable him to see even the smallest of cavities. If you happen to need a copy of the digital image, it can be printed out for you.

Your dental images since being digital can be transferred to a dental specialist by a simple e-mail for his immediate review. It makes it much faster and simpler for your dentist to transfer your records for getting a second opinion.

Digital is, of course, better for the environment. There are no chemicals that must be used to develop the film. No wasted footage or floor space for a darkroom or for storing x-ray film.

At Big Smiles Pediatric Dentistry, we use the Intraoral Camera Transillumination that can treat and diagnose cavities. It can magnify the image it is focused on up to 30 to 115 times. It uses a fluorescence method that soaks up the radiant energy and sends it out like a fluorescent light.

Each tooth is brightened by a 450 nm wavelength of light. The tissue is seen by autofluorescence that will color the tooth either in green, red, or blue hues all depending on what type of cavities or the kind of crack.

It has three different modes: a daylight mode for diagnosis of cavities, treatment mode for use during the excavation process, and it can differentiate healthy tissue from the infected tissue.

Big Smiles Pediatric Dentistry is ahead of the game when it comes to advanced technology for their patients.