Dr. Douglas D. Means Utilizes Panorex to Examine Patients

LORAIN, Ohio - Nov. 18, 2016 - PRLog -- Douglas D. Means, D.M.D.

(440) 282-3642

www.douglasdmeansdmd.com

Dr. Douglas D. Means Utilizes Panorex to Examine Patients

Dental technology is constantly improving, and Douglas D. Means, DMD, is proud to use the best tools for examining his patients. Among the many devices in his high-tech office, the first patients are likely to encounter is the Panorex. This modern x-ray machine is far more convenient than the traditional photographs and offers dentists more ways of analyzing and categorizing information.

Panoramic x-rays are taken with a machine which rotates around a patient's head. As when using any x-ray machine, patients should remove jewelry, hairpins, glasses, and other metal objects, and inform the operator if they are pregnant. They will also wear a leather apron. But whereas older x-rays required patients to hold the film inside their mouths, during panoramic imaging, the patients need only bite down with their front teeth and bite blocker to keep their jaws aligned. The patients stand still while the slides rotate around their head (the height can be adjusted for wheelchair users), and rest their chins on a ledge to ensure they stay sill. The process takes twenty seconds, at most, and is usually shorter.

The Panorex takes a flat image of a 360-degree view of the patient's mouth, allowing all the teeth to be shown in a single image. Besides being faster to make, this kind of image is also digital, allowing it to be manipulated in an imaging program. This allows for easier communication between dentists and their staff, and allows the image to be combined with other software which can predict future changes in the mouth.

X-rays are never meant to be the sole tool a dentist uses for diagnostics. Others, such as the intraoral camera, are necessary for observing color and surface features of soft tissue, and computed tomography scans may be needed to observe the mouth in more detail. However, x-rays are the dentist's first way to see below the gum line, and are usually how impacted teeth are discovered. This is especially important for children whose adult teeth are coming in and who may require orthodontics, and for whom taking old-fashioned x-rays is more difficult. In older patients, Dr. Means can use the Panorex to find evidence of oral cancer and periodontal decay. Dr. Means's practice combines many of these high-tech examination instruments as the first step toward ensuring patients receive the best care possible.

Douglas D. Means, DMD, runs his office at 1710 Cooper Foster Park Rd, Ste A, Lorain, Ohio, 44052. To set up an appointment, call 440-282-3642 or visit DouglasDMeansDMD.com (http://www.douglasdmeansdmd.com/) and fill out a contact sheet (http://www.douglasdmeansdmd.com/contact-us/).