The introduction of 3D digital scanners has improved dental imaging tremendously by doing away with the complexities of traditional imaging techniques like X-rays. The conventional way of imaging has many limitations, such as time-consuming, exposing patients to the harmful X-rays, the risk of gagging and choking, etc.
This is why the 3D digital scanner has become the set standard for proper dental care. With the help of 3D digital scanners, dental practitioners can reconstruct the patients’ teeth and inspect the areas that are out of reach for traditional techniques. Hence, today, the dentists are better positioned to offer effective diagnoses and precise solutions. The 3D intraoral scanners are widely used nowadays in more than one area of dentistry. These include dental implants, root canals, restorative dentistry, oral surgery, reconstructive therapy, and more.
Why are 3D Digital Scanners Preferred to X-ray Imaging?
In several ways, the 3D digital scanners are proving their worth in dental care with their efficiency as well as in helping dentists to diagnose accurately and reduce the time of treatment. Let’s check out the reasons as to why 3D digital scanners are preferred to X-ray imagining.
Minimum or no radiation exposure
As most of the intraoral scanners procure images using laser lights, the patients are not exposed to harmful X-rays. While the digital scanners using X-rays for imaging expose patients to negligible amount of radiation, which can be considered safe.
Higher accuracy
Given that the 3D dental scanners offer high-quality visual output, the dentists are positioned favourably to offer accurate diagnosis. This is because they can view the interiors of the mouth properly and detect any issues related to the structures, nerves, infections and pathologies, etc. The access to the right details enables dentists to create the perfect implant structures and ensure a perfect fitting.
3D model
The 2D models used in conventional imaging methods can limit dentists by offering little or restricted view of the patients’ oral cavities. In contrast, the 3D digital scanners are user-friendly and the procedure involves proper viewing of the oral cavities and thus, offering dentists with more information.
Non-invasive
In the traditional method of imaging, the patients are required to bite a silicone mould piece. Such techniques can make the experience very unpleasant for the patients, besides being bothersome and risky. 3D dental scanners, on the other hand, do not require the patients to undergo such experiences as the images procured after scanning are passed to the lab virtually for processing.
Efficient
In comparison to the conventional process, the 3D dental scanners consume less time to capture the images of the patients’ buccal cavity. Thus, the digital scanners are more efficient and cost-effective in the long term.
Allows easy information exchange
In conventional reconstructive dentistry, the images that are procured using X-rays are required to be manually transferred to the laboratory to prepare the moulds. On the other hand, using 3D digital scanners the dentists can digitally take an impression of the affected area in a negligible amount of time and then virtually send the images to the laboratory without meddling with the images manually.
Conclusion
The introduction of a 3D dental scanner has drastically changed the world of dentistry and made scanning an effortless task for dentists. It has benefited all stakeholders in the process – from doctors and lab technicians to patients with advantages like quick diagnosis, less waiting time, flawless diagnosis, better communication, better view of the oral cavity, patient-friendly treatment, and more.
