[ RadSafe ] Myth or Fact? (Dental dose)

[Michael McCarty]

I applaud the prospect of dose reduction with the digital revolution,
but beware of the break-in period for the staff to effectively apply
their training on digital radiography.

I had the dubious honor of being the first patient to have a digital
bitewing exam in my dentist's office.  They got a decent image after 4
or 5 attempts.  The computer kept registering an insufficient radiation
warning and the image was extremely faint.

I don't know if my question, "What's that circular artifact on the
image?" was really understood or helped the group solve the problem.  By
that point the group consisted of the dental hygienist, a dental
assistant, and finally the dentist.  The problem was resolved when the
dentist turned the imaging device over so that the automatic exposure
sensor was behind the image receptor relative to the radiation source.

Mike



Michael J. McCarty
Physicist, MDEQ Radiological Laboratory

Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
Waste and Hazardous Materials Division
Radiological Protection and Medical Waste Section
Environmental Monitoring Unit
815 Terminal Road
Lansing, MI  48906

phone:  517-335-8196
fax:  517-335-9551
e-mail:  mccartmj at michigan.gov



>>> Yoshihiko Hayakawa <yhayaka at tdc.ac.jp> 08/30/06 6:18 AM >>>
Dear RADSAFE subscribers,

As indicated by Mr. Don Parry, the use of digital sensors has
possibilities of the dose reduction.