Dental X-rays with Your Langley Dentist

When patients come into our office for our services, we’ll often have to take a dental x-ray of their teeth if they show signs of decay. These x-rays are often taken again before any major dental work needs to be done or at routine cleanings. The x-rays allow our team to find any issues that you may be having with your oral health:

Why Do You Need Digital X-rays?

Do you really need x-rays? It depends. There are a lot of reasons that we recommend taking x-rays, but before we get into the fine details, let’s discuss what these x-rays actually are.

When we look in your mouth, we’ll often see decay and potential cavities, but we can’t know for sure how bad the decay is without an x-ray.

The procedure is simple:

Small child having a dental X-ray

The dental assistant or hygienist will position everything and then take the x-ray. Multiple x-rays may be required, and the hygienist will often reposition everything to take an image from a different angle.

We ask that you remain as still as possible while the process takes place.The lead vest will protect you from potential radiation exposure, and the whole process is over in mere minutes. We'll then analyze the x-rays to ensure their accuracy and analyze your images to find decay, cavities and any other issues that you may have with your teeth.

We may recommend digital x-rays for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to:

As a cosmetic Langley dental office we’ll often recommend x-rays if we’re treating any major dental issues and want to track any progression that has taken place. Several things will play a role in us recommending dental x-rays, including your oral health, age, whether you have any form of oral disease, or if you suffer from gum disease, tooth decay or previous dental emergencies.

We also want to address any recurrent cavities with:

If you have impeccable oral health and haven’t had cavities in years, we may even be able to forego your x-rays. But in most cases, you’ll need to have your mouth x-rayed at least once per year so that we can address any dental issues.There are also multiple types of x-rays that we may take depending on what our team decides is recommended.

Types of Dental X-rays We Recommend in our Langley Dentist Clinic

While there are multiple types of x-rays we can take, the two most common are:

For most of our patients, we’ll use one of many intraoral options, including:

While we normally take intraoral images, we may need to take extraoral if you have issues with TMJ or potential jaw structure concerns.

Bitewing dental X-ray
Periapical X-ray of a root canal
Panoramic digital X-ray
Woman working on a dental CT image

Benefits of Having Dental X-rays Done

Dental x-rays are beneficial for a lot of reasons, but it’s recommended by us as a key method of ensuring that we catch any potential dental concerns affecting oral health early on. There are times when dental issues can’t be seen with the naked eye, so while everything looks fine to the dentist, there’s a hidden issue that needs to be addressed.

For example, we’ll need to take x-rays to view potential infections, tumors and some forms of decay. For teeth whitening we want take X-rays to diagnose any cavities that need to be repaired prior to whitening.

When we have a clear picture of your oral health, we’ll be able to treat issues early on so that they don’t progress to tooth extractions. There are also other times when we may recommend x-rays because they help us:

Complications with dental health are often caused by waiting. When you wait to have procedures performed, it may lead to more complex dental treatment requirements.

Our staff is highly trained and takes all of the recommended safety precautions when taking x-rays.

Dental X-ray Safety Risks

Safety remains a top priority for us and our Langley patients. You have enough to worry about in life and don’t need to add dental radiographs to the list. Sometimes the main concerns that we hear from patients are cancer-related.

Patients fear that they’ll either get oral cancer or experience tumor growth from the x-rays. But studies from Yale University found that dental x-rays only accounted for up to 5% of all manmade radiation. Additional studies and examination of the Yale study by a dentistry research team in Quebec verified that there was also no correlation between x-rays and brain tumors.

We're seeing researchers back the use of x-rays and verify their overall safety. Digital x-rays have very low levels of radiation, which is deemed safe for both children and adults. We'll also cover you with a lead blanket that blocks the radiation even further. In terms of exposure to radiation, of all the manmade radiation you’ll experience in life, some of the lowest will come from x-rays.

Imagine having a CT scan of your entire body. When compared to an x-ray, the CT scan produces 800 times more radiation. Dental x-rays produce the same amount of radiation that you would experience on a 1-to-2 hour flight.

So, to help put your mind at ease:

While we would love to not have to do any x-rays in our office, it is a simple necessity in the world of dentistry. We need to have a clear picture of your dental health and any potential decay that has occurred.

Often times, dentists can’t see the true extent of damage to a tooth or the underlying issue without this advanced dental imaging. If we didn’t use x-rays, we would be going into every procedure trying to guess what’s wrong with your teeth. The end result would be highly inefficient dentistry that would allow for dental issues to go undetected and have the opportunity to progress.

Digital X-rays: Why We Recommend Them in Our Langley Dentist Clinic

Dentistry has advanced, and we’re at the stage where dental digital x-rays are superior compared to film x-rays.There are a lot of reasons why we at Lighthouse Dental Centre have chosen to go with digital x-rays over their traditional dental x-rays counter parts:

We want the best for all of our patients at our dental office, and the best almost always means choosing the latest and greatest technology. Digital x-rays offer the opportunity for dentists to offer you a faster, more efficient service while also keeping costs down.

Final Thoughts From Your Langley Dentist Clinic

X-rays are always a valid concern for dental patients, but they’re also a very valuable tool for our dentists to diagnose issues and plan strategies within our wide range of services.

When focusing on the health of our patients, we opt for digital x-rays because of the high-end safety they offer on top of the in-depth imaging . The rapid results allow us to make quick treatment recommendations so that our patients can have the best smile in town.

When x-rays are required, we take every possible measure to protect our patients and ensure their comfort. Don't worry, dental digital x-rays are fast and efficient while also offering insight into your dentistry needs. Book your screening appointment today to schedule an appointment!

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