Intraoral cameras offer immediate, live footage of patients’ oral cavities, making them an invaluable tool for dentists
Key points:
How often do you struggle to explain a dental care concept to a patient?
Whether it’s receding gum lines, poor brushing technique, or a failure to floss, a big part of your job is to ensure the patient is aware of the state of their teeth and how they can actively address it.
Using third-party examples like diagrams and case study photographs is only so effective. Ideally, you can show the patient exactly what’s going on in their mouth.
With intraoral cameras, you can. The development of higher quality and smaller cameras has paved the way for intraoral cameras, which are small enough to sit on the end of an instrument and enter directly inside the mouth, streaming footage to a nearby device.
As the name suggests, the intraoral camera is ideal for dental photography. They are designed to be small enough to fit inside the oral cavity, capturing an image that is far more detailed than a dentist could get with the naked eye or a conventional camera.
There are plenty of reasons for a dentist to use an intraoral camera:
Patient Awareness
Dental photography allows dentists to show patients what the inside of their mouths looks like.
They can give exact, detailed examples of plaque, tar, cavities, and other dental care concepts that patients would otherwise have to imagine. This will greatly improve patient awareness of their role in dental care.
Extra Information & Detail
Compared with viewing the oral cavity with the naked eye or even an expensive digital camera, an intraoral camera can provide much more visual information and detail to the dentist.
In particular, the camera’s smaller size and greater maneuverability will let dentists get an angle and view of specific areas at the back of the mouth that would only be visible with a mirror otherwise.
Access & Comfort
It’s easier to see inside the oral cavity with an intraoral camera than asking the patient to open it wide.
With an intraoral camera, the dentist doesn’t have to crane their neck or work with a light and mirror inside the patient’s mouth to get a look at the back of a specific tooth. The intraoral camera makes for a more comfortable experience in every way.
Just like conventional digital cameras, intraoral cameras can vary significantly in price. By some estimates, an intraoral camera can cost you anywhere from $50 to $5,000. The difference comes down to the quality of the lens, the functionality of the design, and additional features on the software side, which affect your experience as a user when exporting photos.
As you can expect, the more money you spend, the better the images and user experience. If you opt for the cheapest option available, don’t expect much in terms of image quality and functionality.
Interested in trying an intraoral at your practice?
The NOVA Computer Solutions team can help. We specialize in IT support for dental practices and can help you and your staff harness new technologies to improve how you care for patients.
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