DIAGNOdent
Finding Difficult Decay The Easy Way
One of the most important things we do for our patients is to identify cavities and restore teeth. Since any spot of decay can threaten the integrity of an entire tooth, this is key to preventing a host of future problems. Historically, that's why lengthy poking and prodding sessions have been an acceptable, if not very comfortable, part of dental exams. However, such methods of decay detection are only 60% to 75% successful: cavities can hide along fissure lines, or inside biting or occlusal surfaces. Further, mechanical exploratory methods are limited to finding only those cavities that are equal to or larger than the probe head. Enter DIAGNOdent: a revolutionary, thorough means of detecting cavities. This means shallower, simpler fillings, preserving more tooth structure, and providing a specific mean of monitoring suspicious areas without repeated x-rays.
DIAGNOdent F.A.Q.
- Q: Does it hurt?
A: No! DIAGNOdent is completely painless. It’s energy level similar to that of a laser pointer, the laser beam is harmless to surrounding tissues. -
Q: What are the shortcomings of the traditional dental techniques like probing and x-ray imaging?
A: Believe it or not, as much as 40% of tooth decay may go undetected by traditional dental methods of probing and other diagnostic techniques. -
Q: How long has this technology been around?
A: While the device has been in use in Europe for several years, the FDA has recently approved the use of the cavity-detecting laser for use by dentists in the U.S. -
Q: Where does most tooth decay start today?
A: Today most tooth decay starts in the hard-to-see valleys and canyon-like anatomy of the tooth biting surface. -
Q: Why are these pit and valley cavities more important to detect today than in the past?
A: In the past tooth decay was most common in between teeth. With the widespread use of fluoride, the very nature of tooth decay has changed. The outer surfaces of teeth are strengthened and more resistant. Today the pit and valley cavities are more prevalent than cavities in between teeth. -
Q: Why can’t traditional methods like x-rays see these pit
and valley cavities?
A: Pit and valley cavities on the biting surface of the teeth are traditionally the most difficult to detect using x-rays due to the direction the images are taken from. Images are taken from the side of the tooth, which essentially hides this cavity from the dentists view in the xray. -
Q: If DIAGNOdent is good at finding pit and fissure cavities do I still need x-rays?
A: Yes, x-ray imaging is an indispensable diagnostic tool for dentistry. X-rays and DIAGNOdent complement each other. X-rays are good at finding cavities in between teeth and on the roots. DIAGNOdent is good at find cavities on the tooth’s biting surface. -
Q: Why should one be concerned if you can’t see the cavity?
A: An almost undetectable area of decay can aggressively penetrate inward towards the soft surfaces of the tooth and literally destroy the tooth from the inside out. This can happen before a cavity is even visible to the naked eye. -
Q: Why can’t traditional methods like the dental explorer
(probe) find these pit and valley cavities?
A: This type of decay can make diagnosis with traditional methods difficult because the outer tooth surface often appears to be intact and the probe may be too large to detect the cavity. -
Q: How does DIAGNOdent work?
A: DIAGNOdent is first calibrated to your unique tooth structure by scanning a cleaned tooth surface with a harmless laser beam. Then a team member will gently scan all your teeth. The diagnodent device emits an audio signal and registers a digital read-out, which identifies cavities developing below the surface .The higher the amount of fluorescence detected by the machine, the greater the degree of decay within the tooth. -
Q: What is the benefit to me?
A: Because the decay is detected earlier, the number of dental procedures - and hence, the cost - can often be reduced. It's a great way to keep little problems from becoming big problems. -
Q: Does the DIAGNOdent process take long?
A: It only takes a few minutes to scan your entire mouth. -
Q: How much does it cost?
A: Dr. Marcia Nemecek uses the DIAGNOdent laser as a routine part of exams and there is no additional fee associated with the scan. -
Q: What is the DIAGNOdent actually measuring?
A: The DIAGNOdent measures laser fluorescence within the tooth structure. As laser light is shined into the site, two-way handpiece optics allows the unit to at the same time measure the reflected laser light energy (flourescence). At the specific wavelength that the DIAGNOdent laser operates, clean healthy tooth structure exhibits little or no fluorescence, resulting in very low number readings on the display. However, decayed tooth structure will exhibit fluorescence, in proportion to the amount of decay, resulting in higher numbers on the display. -
Q: Can DIAGNOdent be used around existing composite resin restorations?
A: No. Because composite resins can fluoresce, giving higher than normal readings, the DIAGNOdent should not be used on these materials.It will not harm any dental material. -
Q: Can DIAGNOdent detect cavities under an amalgam filling?
A: If there is decay at the edge of the filling, it will give an accurate reading; however if the decay is completely underneath the filling, DIAGNOdent will not detect it properly -
Q: Can DIAGNOdent be used on both baby and permanent teeth?
A: Studies have shown DIAGNOdent works well on both. -
Q: Is protective eyewear required since DIAGNOdent is a laser?
A: No. DIAGNOdent is harmless when used as directed.