| Feature Article
Getting the
FULL Picture!
Introducing 3D to your 2D practice Dr. Michael Young has been using digital imaging systems in his practice since he established Forever Young Dentistry in Sterling Heights, Michigan, 15 years ago. In 2015, he decided to upgrade to 3D imaging. The decision has transformed his practice — from improving diagnostic capabilities to boosting his reputation with his patients. When Dr. Young decided to grow his implant capabilities, “Rather than outsourcing my implant patients to an imaging center and inconveniencing them while potentially losing control of the case, I thought it would be more efficient to have the 3D imaging unit in my office,” he explains. 3D imaging provided so much more diagnostic information than 2D imaging that soon, Dr. Young was capturing scans for much more than implant placement. “I noticed that for some patients who were complaining of pain or discomfort, I couldn’t find anything on the traditional 2D PA. Inevitably, many of these people would return with the same issue. He says, “When we captured a 3D scan and discovered information not seen on a 2D, we would think, why didn’t we take a 3D image in the first place?”
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“I noticed that for some patients who were complaining of pain or discomfort, I couldn’t find anything on the traditional 2D PA.”
“Minimizing radiation exposure to patients is not an issue with my cone beam system”, Dr. Young notes, and one of the reasons he chose a Planmeca system. “Traditional 2D dental radiography cannot view certain dental anomalies until there is extensive loss of bone, but since our system has an Ultra Low Dose capability, I can have quality diagnostics and a radiation exposure that is 30% of the radiation of one 2D digital intraoral X-ray.” He continues, “Many different machines and manufacturers offer a lot of different radiation exposure promises, but unfortunately many sacrifice diagnostic image quality for lower exposure. “The Ultra Low Dose technology on my system and intelligent 3D algorithms result in high quality
