About Your Teeth Xrays Archives - About Your Teeth

Q & A's

  • Dental x-rays bitewings

Why do I need dental x-rays?

Dental x-rays help your dentist see underlying issue not obvious to the naked eye. The arrows show dental decay and the areas most commonly affected by dental decay. Do you really need dental X-rays? Yes, absolutely. Dental X-rays are a screening procedure that allows the dentist to get “the full picture” and to understand what […]

I am pregnant. Should I avoid X-rays?

It depends on the type of X-ray you need and exactly how much radiation you’re going to be exposed to. As an example most dental X-ray are only 0.01 millirad. To keep this in perspective, during pregnancy your baby is exposed to about 100 millirads of natural radiation from the sun and earth. A CT scan, typically requested […]

Types of x-rays

Dental x-rays are pictures of the teeth, bones, and tissues around them. They help identify problems with the teeth, mouth and jaws.  X-ray pictures can show cavities, hidden dental structures (such as wisdom teeth), and bone loss that cannot be seen during a purely visual examination. Dental X-rays may also be done as follow-up after dental treatments. The X-rays […]

What are bitewing x-rays?

Bitewing x-rays show the upper and lower back teeth and how the teeth touch each other in a single view. They do not display the complete tooth and at best show only the top two thirds. These x-rays are used to check for decay between the teeth.  Existing fillings can be seen and evaluated for decay. […]

Why would I need a periapical x-ray?

A periapical x-ray shows the entire tooth, from the exposed crown to the end of the root and the bones that support the tooth. These X-rays are used to identify dental problems below the gum line or in the jaw, such as impacted teeth, abscesses, cysts, tumors, and bone changes linked to some diseases. It […]

What’s an OPG and why should I have one?

OPG is an acronym for ‘orthopantomograph’. An OPG machine is specifically designed to produce an OPG x-ray of the teeth, jaws and temperomandibular joints. The image provides an overview of the state of the dentition as well as information regarding the bones of the jaw (the mandible and maxilla), the sinuses in the upper jaw and the […]

Cone Bean Computerised Tomography (CBCT)

Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) is a new medical imaging technique that generates 3-D images at a lower cost and absorbed dose compared with conventional computed tomography (CT). This imaging technique is based on a cone-shaped X-ray beam centred on a 2-D detector that performs one rotation around the object, producing a series of 2-D images. […]