X-rays are an important part of protecting your dental health!
A dental x-ray provides a detailed diagnostic image of the teeth and surrounding bone, allowing dentists to diagnose problems that would not otherwise be obvious. This enables you to get the treatment you need.
However, not everyone gets x-rays with the same level of frequency.
How Often Do Most People Get Dental X-Rays?
If you visit your dentist every year for a cleaning, you will notice that you don’t get x-rays done every single time. People who have no history of dental problems or complicating conditions usually receive a dental x-ray every 2-3 years.
The situation changes if you have had serious issues affecting your teeth, gums, or surrounding bone in the past. It may be necessary to monitor your mouth more closely so that problems do not arise unexpectedly. This leads to more frequent x-rays.
In such cases, you may find yourself getting dental x-rays once or even twice a year – that is, every six months. Older people tend to require x-rays more frequently than younger ones. This is due in part to higher risk of bone deteriorating in the jaw and around the teeth.
What Type of X-Ray Do the Best Dentists Use?
X-rays are a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. An x-ray machine generates images of body tissues by projecting x-rays through the patient and toward an x-ray detector positioned on the person’s opposite side. Taking an x-ray requires only a few seconds.
Traditional x-ray images are black and white. Solid tissues such as tooth and bone show up as relatively bright areas of the image, while soft tissues may be difficult or impossible to see. These x-ray machines produce images exclusively in black and white.
Conventional x-rays have been in service for many decades and are very safe. However, the images are sometimes difficult to interpret. For this reason, advanced dentists are focusing on high-tech digital x-rays. Digital x-rays have many advantages over their counterparts:
- Digital x-rays produce color imagery, making most problems easier to diagnose.
- Images captured by the machine are instantly archived so they cannot be lost.
- Modern x-ray machines work even more quickly and require even less radiation.
If you are not sure when you last got dental x-rays, it is probably time to think about it. Contact the Coscarella Family dental team to find out more or set an appointment today.
