Dental X-ray images, also known as dental radio-graphs, are one of the most important pieces of equipment a dentist has for keeping teeth, gums and mouth healthy. A dental X-ray allows dentists to detect problems that are just not visible to the naked eye, such as cracks in fillings, decay in between teeth and bone loss. Dental X-rays are also vital when planning dental work such as root canals and dental implants.
The main differences between digital dental X-rays and regular X-rays are their ease of use. In digital radiography, the film is replaced with a digital dental x-ray sensor. This digital X-ray sensor receives the X-rays in much the same way as a film does, but instead of developing the film in a dark room, the digital dental X-ray sensor sends the image directly to a computer where it appears on the screen. As well as the speed and convenience of this process, one of the major advantages of digital dental X-rays is that a computer can digitally compare an image to previous images.