Dental X-Rays: What, Why, When, and How Safe?

One of the most common questions that I am asked is, "do I really need an x-ray?"

Dental x-rays, or dental radiographs, have suffered from a public reputation problem lately, with some recent published articles gaining popularity on the internet claiming that dental x-rays are unsafe and are linked to a multitude of health problems.

1) What are dental x-rays?

Dental x-rays, like medical x-rays, require a tubehead with an energy source to create x-rays using an electron stream. X-rays are high-energy electromagnetic particles in the same spectrum as visible light as radio waves that will pass through our tissues and project to a film to provide an image that our naked eyes cannot see.

Traditionally, dental x-rays were taken on film, not unlike films used in the 80's and 90's for cameras.

Nowadays, many dental offices, including ours at MC2 Dental, have switched to digital x-rays, which can be viewed almost immediately, as opposed to processing x-ray films. Digital x-rays also greatly decrease radiation exposure (~80-90% less radiation) to both the patient and our staff, and have increased clarity and resolution to help see things clearer.

2) Why do we need dental x-rays?

Doing a clinical examination without x-rays may result in dental problems being missed. This includes cavities in between teeth (interproximal cavity), areas of isolated bone loss due to gum disease, or even pathology such as tumours or cancer.

When gum disease is severe, or when a cavity is large, it can be seen without an x-ray. But do we want our problems to progress to near the point of no return when it could have been diagnosed and treated earlier? Most likely not.

3) When do we need dental x-rays?

At MC2 Dental, especially for new patients, we would like to have a full set of x-rays as a starting point for diagnosis. If you have had x-rays taken at another dental office within the last 2 to 3 years, then they can be forwarded to our office and we may not need to capture new images.

For returning patients, we follow the American Dental Association's guidelines on frequency and type of radiographs taken. This takes into account individual risk factors for gum disease and cavities, the patient's age, and the stage of dental development. Every recommendation we make is based on clinical experience, science, and expertise.

4) How safe are dental x-rays?

Dental x-rays are very safe. To reduce radiation exposure to patients even more, a lead apron is provided so no unnecessary exposure is given to other body parts.

Even for pregnant women, the benefits of dental x-rays often outweigh the (very small) risks.

Below is an infographic on the safety of dental x-rays compared to environmental radiation that we acquire in our day-to-day lives.

As with anything else, please talk to your dental professional or email me if you have any questions. We all want to provide the best care to our patients, and education goes a long way in doing that.