Dental X-ray Machine Maintenance

Due to the growing presence of COVID-19 throughout the world, many dental practices were forced to close their doors for several months this spring. Although safety protocols have certainly changed, now is the time to reopen and welcome patients back in for treatment. Before you see your first patient, however, it’s wise to inspect and test your dental X-ray machine. Use this guide when powering on or using your X-ray for the first time after being out of the office for at least a week. This helps to ensure proper operation and safety for you and your staff.

Powering on a Dental X-ray Machine

Hopefully you were given notice that you would be required to close your doors. In this event, you should have been able to unplug the power cord from the wall. If this was not the case, it is recommended that you contact Renew Digital Support before powering the dental X-ray machine back on.

Look around the base of the X-ray machine and the floor for oil leaks or a compromised generator. The generator is one of the most important parts of the machine and is often the most expensive to replace. Following this checklist on a routine basis will greatly reduce the risk of failure and down time for your dental X-ray machine.

Before you use the dental X-ray machine with a patient, it’s best to “season” the generator by taking test images using various settings and parameters. When capturing these images:

• Start from lowest to highest and select your kV and mA parameter range.
• Leave the X-ray room and area.
• For each parameter setting, press and hold the X-ray’s remote control to launch the X-ray. Repeat this process for each parameter setting.
• Once you’ve captured test images for each parameter setting, perform image quality control checks and calibrations according to the manufacturer’s guidelines. Be sure to use approved phantoms and calibration tools for CBCT units.

If you have any questions or need assistance during this process, please call Renew Digital Support at 888-246-5611 and select option 3.

Disinfection and Sterilization

Once you’ve ensured the dental X-ray machine is operational, you’ll want to make sure it’s disinfected and sterilized before patient use. It’s now more important than ever before to make sure you’re following manufacturer, CDC, and OSHA guidelines for proper disinfection and sterilization of equipment. We advise using alcohol-based wipes because cavicide wipes can cause damage to the delicate X-ray components and covers. You’ll also want to stock up on disposable barriers and/or bite sticks so you have enough to change them after every patient.

In addition to disinfecting and sterilizing the X-ray area, here are three tips from Renew Digital Support to help avoid transmitting COVID-19 during dental radiography.

• Ask that your patients do not wear their face mask during the exam so that you can properly position the patient. It is vitally important that the distance between an X-ray room and the dental treatment room follows a standard guideline to prevent aerosol transmission. Dental aerosols can reach up to 10 feet from the source and linger in the air.
• Use digital radiography rather than film when possible and share images electronically rather than on physical media. CDs, DVDs, or other physical mediums that store digital images may be easily contaminated and not easily sterilized. If possible, capture, store, and share all images in a digital manner.
• Opt for extraoral radiographs instead of intraoral radiographs, when possible. A high-quality digital panoramic image may be enough to get the information you need in an emergency setting. For cases such as dental trauma, a small FOV CBCT may suffice, as they can provide detailed information about the crown and root without oral contamination. The quality of extraoral radiographs has improved so much in recent years that subtle caries, an estimation of the position of the alveolar crest, and periapical changes can be diagnosed with panoramic X-rays. If you have a panoramic X-ray machine that captures extraoral bitewings, those may also be a good alternative to intraoral X-rays during these unprecedented times.

Contact Renew Digital for Support

When the time comes to power on your dental X-ray machine again, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Renew Digital Support Team with questions. You can reach us at 888-246-5611, option 3 or support@renewdigital.com. We look forward to helping you and your practice reopen safely and efficiently.