The Future of Dentistry: 3D Dental CT Scans in london
Prepared by: Aldgate Dental Care
What are 3D Dental CT Scans? Dental Cone Beam CT. Dental cone beam computed tomography (CT) is a special type of x-ray equipment used when regular dental or facial x-rays are not sufficient. Your doctor may use this technology to produce three dimensional (3-D) images of your teeth, soft tissues, nerve pathways and bone in a single scan.
3D dental CT scans provide precise threedimensional images of the teeth, the jawbones and the whole oral cavity. These are very helpful in the preparation needed before a dental implant treatment. Compared to dental X-rays, CT scans offer more accurate information that will be beneficial in the successful and precise placement of implants in specific points on the jawbone..
What is involved in 3D Dental CT Scans? Dental X-rays can become distorted and cannot depict the thickness of your jawbone. They are two-dimensional and only show the location of your teeth and the height of the bone. An image obtained with a 3D CT scan is free from distortion. It illustrates the actual make-up of the bone and provides three-dimensional and cross-sectional views of your jaws. This allows accurate measurement of the amount of bone available to take implants. Before images are taken with a 3D CT scanner, patients must remove all items in the head and neck area containing metal, because the metal parts may cause the images taken to be distorted.
Who Can Have 3D Dental CT Scans? 3D dental CT scans provide the most benefits for patients who: Will need dental implants to be placed in areas of the jawbone that are considered to be very delicate or risky. Will undergo a same-day/immediate dental implant treatment that involves the placement of multiple implants. Will undergo a dental implant treatment that involves a number of dental implants to be attached, or for a full arch of implants. Need to go through advanced supporting treatments, such as bone grafting, sinus lift (or sinus grafting), and nerve repositioning procedures.
The Benefits of 3D Dental CT Scans The use of 3D dental CT scans ensures that the images that are obtained are precise and free from distortion; these highly accurate images are necessary to ensure the success of the dental implant procedure. The three-dimensional images that come from the CT scan provide more valuable information compared to the two-dimensional images that are taken by a dental X-ray. Dental CT scans enable dentists to perform what used to be considered as high-risk dental implants placement into delicate parts of the jawbone with great accuracy; the location where the implants need to be placed can easily be determined with the help of the clear three-dimensional images from the 3D dental CT scan.