The Dental Panorex: Protecting Teeth and Saving Lives!

Today’s dental digital panorex can find more than just tooth decay. They can also detect critical medical conditions. As a dental professional, this ability is vital to your important role in overall patient health. You can warn patients better than ever before of potential health risks. After all, the average patient visits their dentist twice per year, but only visits their primary care physician every five to 10 years. This means you’re the patient’s first line of defense in managing their overall health. Let’s take a look at this in more detail.

Noticing the First Warning Signs

You can begin monitoring a patient’s general health from the moment they step into your dental practice. Train your hygienists to pay special attention when leading your patients to the exam room and getting them seated in the chair. This gives them the opportunity to look for breathing problems, off-toned skin color, or imbalance when walking and getting seated.

It’s also important to review the patient’s medical history before each visit. This allows you to monitor new health concerns and medications, as well as give you an idea for what they may be struggling with. For example, if the patient is taking medication for high blood pressure or a thyroid issue, you can then pay special attention to the blood pressure exam, and look at the thyroid on a panorex dental image. You can also link their oral health to other existing conditions like diabetes or heart disease.

Using Panorex Dental Images to Identify Plaque Build Up

Although difficult, it is sometimes possible to see the carotid artery in a panorex dental image. If, while reviewing your patient’s medical history, you learn that they’ve had treatment for carotid artery disease, you can offer to take a panorex image to ensure that the carotid artery is clear. If you see plaque or other anomalies on the image, you can alert the patient to visit their primary care doctor for further examination. Doing so has the potential to save your patient’s life.

Preventing Oral Cancer with a Routine Teeth Cleaning

An oral cancer screening is not typically required in a routine teeth cleaning, but adding this quick step can have a major benefit for your patients. When detected early, oral cancer patients have an 80-90% chance of survival. This screening can be as simple as a visual examination of the tongue and throat, looking for precancerous white spots. You may wish to go one step further and take panorex dental images to look at the jugular vein. This conscientious work can lead to tens of thousands of oral cancer cases being diagnosed in the early stages.

Shop Dental Panorex with Renew Digital

If you’re looking to add the power of digital panorex dental imaging to your practice, look no further than Renew Digital. We offer a variety of panoramic X-ray units that will allow you to view your patients’ oral health in a more in-depth way than ever before. Best of all, you can find the perfect used dental equipment at 40-60% off the retail price. Contact us online or give us a call today! We can discuss your practice’s individual needs and help you find the right certified pre-owned dental Panorex for you.