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| X-Ray FAQ |
Standard of Care for X-Rays
“The Standard of Care in Oregon requires that current radiographs are available prior to providing treatment to a patient. If a patient without medical justification refuses to allow radiographs to be taken, even with the offer to sign a waiver, then providing treatment to that patient would violate the Standard of Care in Oregon.”
The decision when to take or not to take radiographs is the responsibility of an Oregon Dentist or Expanded Practice Permit Dental Hygienist and it is based on several factors including the patient’s oral health, patient’s age, the risk for disease and any sign or symptoms of oral disease that a patient may be experiencing. This is called the standard of care.
Further, Oregon Dentists and Expanded Practice Permit Dental Hygienists should follow the guidelines established by the ADA and the Food and Drug Administration regarding radiographs.
Advanced technology means less x-ray exposure to our patients
At Neal Family Dental, we use digital x-rays. The worry of exposure to excess radiation is eliminated. Digital imaging allows us to take x-rays with 1/6th of the radiation that you would receive from with traditional dental x-rays. Digital x-rays also have several advantages over traditional film based x-rays: digital images are available immediately, clearer images, and being in a digital format also allows us to quickly send and receive your images electronically for consultation, or insurance communications.
How much radiation will I receive today?
On average, Americans receive a radiation dose of about 625 millirem, [or 6.25 milliSievert ( mSv) ] each year. Half of this dose comes from natural background radiation and the other half is man-made. Most of the background exposure comes from radon in the air, with smaller amounts from cosmic rays and the Earth itself. (Source: www.nrc.org)
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