1. Dental Radiographs and the Dental Radiographer
DHYG 116
Oral Radiology I
Christine Harwood, MS, RDH

2. Dental Radiography Questions Why are dental radiographs important?
What common dental conditions may be found on dental radiographs?
What responsibilities may be assigned to the dental radiographer in a dental office?

3. Dental Radiography
Chapter 11 reading:
Haring (pp )

4. Objectives Define key words: radiograph, radiographer
Discuss the importance of dental radiographs
List the uses of dental radiographs
List examples of common dental conditions that my be evident on a dental radiograph
Discuss the knowledge and skill requirements of the dental radiographer
List the responsibilities that may be assigned
Discuss the professional goals of the dental radiographer

5. Dental Radiographs Dental radiograph
A photographic image produced on film by the passage of x-rays through teeth and supporting structures

6. The Importance of Dental Radiographs
A necessary component of comprehensive care
Essential for diagnostic purposes
Enable the dental professional to identify many conditions that may otherwise go undetected

7. Uses of Dental Radiographs
Detection of diseases, lesions, and conditions of the teeth and bones that cannot be identified clinically
Confirming suspected diseases
Assisting in the localization of lesions and foreign objects

8. Benefits of Dental Radiographs
Haring (p. 141)
Primary benefit is detection of disease
The benefit far outweighs the risk of small doses of x-radiation

9. Information Found on Dental Radiographs
Haring (pp )
Missing teeth
Extra teeth
Impacted teeth
Dental caries
Periodontal disease
Tooth abnormalities
Retained roots
Cysts and tumors

10. The Dental Radiographer
Knowledge and Skill Requirements
Duties and Responsibilities
Professional Goals

11. The Dental Radiographer
Any person who positions, exposes, and processes dental x-ray film

12. Knowledge and Skill Requirements
Haring (p. 142)
Basic understanding of radiation history
Working knowledge of radiation physics, characteristics, biology, and protection
Familiar with dental x-ray equipment, film, image characteristics, processing, and quality assurance
Patient management basics
Technique concepts and technical skills

13. Duties and Responsibilities
May include:
Positioning and exposure of dental x-ray films
Processing of dental x-ray films
Mounting and identification of dental radiographs
Education of patients
Maintenance of darkroom facilities and processing equipment
Implementation and monitoring of quality control procedures
Ordering of film and supplies

14. Professional Goals Patient protection Operator protection
Haring (pp )
Patient protection
Operator protection
Patient education
Operator competence
Operator efficiency
Production of quality radiographs

15. Syllabus Review Read through the syllabus, & review schedule
Discuss learning objectives
Go to WebCT to check assignments
This is a hybrid course (web-hosted). You will have two lectures in class and one lab per week.
Lecture notes ( PPT’s) will be posted on WebCT as .pdf files, so you will need to have Adobe loaded
Quizzes may be either paper or on WebCT, so be sure to bring your computers to class.