What Is A Dental X-Ray For?

Ever since the first x-ray machine debuted, they’ve been an invaluable tool for doctors, dentists, and medical professionals of all kinds. Not only do they show the strength and state of every bone in your body (and without the need to cut a patient open in the process), they can also locate tumors and foreign objects that don’t belong in your body.

As far as dentistry is concerned, x-ray scans are for checking the alignment of teeth both above and below the gum line, for seeing how a child’s permanent teeth are coming in, and for checking the strength of teeth and fillings. A dentist can take several different kinds of x-rays for different tasks:

Panoramic x-rays sweep around the entire mouth and show off every tooth on a single image. This is good for a general look at how teeth are aligned with one another and whether the permanent teeth are lined up properly.

• Tomograms highlight a specific “slice” of the mouth which allows a dentist to look at something which may be obscured by a nearby object or structure.
• Computerized tomography scans, or CT scans, create a large number of these slices to generate a three-dimensional image of your mouth and skull. While these images are very thorough, they’re also overkill for most purposes.
• Bitewing x-rays provide a close-up look at the crowns and part of the roots of around eight of your teeth at once: four from the top and four from the bottom. This close look is good for checking the integrity of your teeth and fillings.
• Periapical x-rays move the focus from the crowns to the entire tooth down to the root. These are to check the root structure and the strength of the surrounding bone.
• Occlusal x-rays are taken from a more vertical angle and look at the entire upper or lower jaw. These x-rays help the dentist or orthodontist see whether each tooth is correctly oriented.
• Sialography x-rays involve a special dye which your dentist injects into your salivary glands to take a look at them. If you happen to suffer from chronic dry mouth, it may turn out that your salivary glands are malfunctioning, and this technique allows your dentist to have a look.

Although the classic reason for avoiding a dentist is the whine of the drill, there’s always something a little disquieting about the bulk of an x-ray machine and the way the operator hides away while it’s in use. As such, it can help to know why your dentist would want you to step into the x-ray room to take a few pictures.