Portable Dental X-Ray – A  Faster And Safer Way To Diagnose

The x-ray machines, assist the dental surgeon in easily diagnosing, filtering, zooming or planning treatment and predict the outcome efficiently and effectively. Patients can make better decisions about their dental health with all the data available to them.

Conventional dental x-ray is wall-mounted & uses a socket-powered stand that is connected to a tube head generating x-ray when placed adjacent to the patient. These conventional x-rays must be installed, which usually requires a reinforced wall or additional electrical work.

Also, it requires a very sturdy wall to mount the box at an adequate distance from the patient’s head. These requirements are at times not possible to achieve in a dental practice.

Difficulty with the correct positioning can expose the operator to additional radiation due to the backscattering of the rays. Angulations of the device relative to the position of the detector may at times be difficult for the operator with limited physical strength. The Constant shifting of the sensor between multiple image acquisitions necessitates an operator to repeatedly handle the device many times resulting in cross-contamination issues.

To overcome all these disadvantages there has come a new development in the world of digital dental x-ray i.e. the portable dental x-ray machine.

What are portable dental x-rays?

A Portable Dental X-Ray Machine is a handheld x-ray unit without the requirement of any wall-mounted equipment. These x-ray units are getting trendier around the globe in every dental office as it’s a cost-effective and space-saving alternative compared to the fixed ones.

Handheld x-rays were originally used for situations like a military field hospital, dental triage emergencies as well as in forensics. General use of this x-ray for dental practice was approved in 2005. This handheld x-ray is battery powered, portable, and designed to be held in the hand of the operator during exposure giving relief from adjusting the arm.

Is the X-ray unit safe?

Both the patient as well as the dentist get exposed to the radiation undoubtedly in a dental X-Ray. Even if the radiation dose is lower, still there is an inherent risk associated with the exposure that can’t be overlooked.

To overcome these disadvantages there have to be safety measures installed in the x-ray unit which can minimize the ill effects of exposure.

What are the criteria for a safe portable dental x-ray?

A high-voltage power supply in a high-frequency DC x-ray unit should be used in portable x-ray equipment to limit the radiation to the patient. The x-ray tube should be surrounded by compounds of heavy metals to reduce any leakage of radiation from the tube. For the same reason, internal and external shielding is done to prevent the backscattering of these radiations.

The x-ray unit should have a beam limitation focussing on the area of interest as the smaller the radiation area, it reduces the patient dose by 25%. The duty cycle is designed to avoid damage from overheating, so it is very much required that the x-ray machine should have less exposure time for less radiation exposure. This is also fitted with a timer so the possibility to make exposure becomes zero once the timer goes off.

Genoray Port X II.

It is an FDA-approved portable x-ray device that is cordless and rechargeable with an inbuilt LEAD shielding that gives more than 100 exposures on a single charge. To reduce the inadvertent exposure, there is a Shut Off and On functionality in this device. Also, the beam is limited to 6cm only. It’s an imported product from South Korea and one of the highest-selling units in India due to its image quality with minimum radiation exposure. Its whole body shielding with LEAD makes it a very safe device & prevents dispersion of radiation. It is a compact wireless x-ray device that can be used for multi chair clinics.

To summarize the key features of this portable dental x-ray machine are:

• Excellent shielding
• Minimum radiation exposure
• 60kV/2mA Toshiba Tube
• 8 focal spot
• Graphic LCD display
• Round type beam limiting device
• Patient and tooth selection mode

Conclusion

It is imperative to maintain safety from radiation exposure by following the radiation protocol. As seen this portable ray unit is equipped with all safety featured Genoray Port XII is one of the best-selling portable dental x-ray units and is highly recommended by the dentists of India.