Are You Concerned About Dental X-Rays?

Let us help calm your fears! We are concerned about radiation too, so we want you to have the facts you need to make an educated decision when it comes to your children.

We want you to know the truth about dental x-rays. Just to break it down for you, below is a chart of the radiation doses you receive from different x-rays. An annual maximum occupational exposure for radiation workers in the united State is 5,000 millirems (measure for radiation). When you spread low doses out over a period of time, it's not as destructive to the body because it has time to recover.

High dose group includes:

*Mammography =1000

*Pelvimetry = 875

*Lower spine = 450

*Middle spine = 347

Medium dose group includes:

*Abdomen = 147

*Ribs = 143

*Pelvis = 133

*Skull = 78

*Hip = 72

Low dose group includes:

*Neck = 52

*Femur = 21

*Full Mouth dental series (digital) = less than 1

*Dental Bitewing (digital) = less than .05

To put this in perspective, you would need to have 2000 dental x-rays to equal the radiation in 1 mammogram. To reach that maximum safety dose, we would have to take approximately 10,000.

On average, people receive 3 dental bitewings worth of radiation a day just from being outside in the sun, around concrete buildings or roads. These are some studies produced by radiologists saying that low doses may actually reduce cancer risks. Knowing how low the dose is, lets talk about the benefits of dental x-rays.

Here are just a few:

*detecting hidden decay

*detecting the presence of a cyst or tumor

*determining the presence of permanent teeth

*detecting oral cancer

*detecting root involvement with the sinuses

*helping to determine whether or not to remove primary teeth

*determining if extra teeth are present

The list goes on and on. We hope you feel safe and secure when your child gets his or her next set of dental x-rays!