Optimization of radiation doses and patients’ risk in dental radiography Available to Purchase

A major progress was made in dental medicine from using different types of dental radiographs (i.e., intraoral, panoramic and three-dimensional (3D) Cone-Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT)). They offer high-quality images which are used to diagnose and make a treatment plan suitable for every patient, and also to check the results of the doctor’s work during the treatment. A concern regarding these techniques is their invasiveness, referring to the radiation dose they imply and to the risks these radiations present for the patients. The aim of this study is to approach this issue by discussing the patient’s risk in dental radiography. The optimization of the dose received by patients during such exposures (i.e., for the three techniques above) is made, in a clinical setting. The experience acquired in practice in a dental medicine clinic is presented, both for dental radiography and for CBCT. We demonstrate that the doses required for a full dental treatment (comprising several panoramic and intraoral radiographs, as well as a few 3D CBCT radiographs) are not dangerous for the patients – if the proper optimizations of the instrument settings and of the patient’s positioning are made. Such optimizations also ensure a good resolution of the images acquired.