In recent years, the dental industry has developed rapidly, with the market size nearly doubling in just a few years. As the dental industry market becomes increasingly rich and sound, competition among dental institutions has become increasingly fierce. Judging from statistics, orthodontic services and implant services account for more than 70% of the market in the dental service industry.
Whether it is a public hospital or a private clinic, implant and orthodontic services can bring huge customer flow. For these popular dental fields, equipped with advanced dental medical imaging equipment and digital solutions will undoubtedly greatly enhance the market competitiveness of dental institutions.
In this issue, we will briefly introduce oral imaging and comprehensively popularize the commonly used oral medical imaging equipment today to help various dental institutions choose the most suitable imaging equipment for different diagnosis and treatment services!
1. Oral imaging
The full name of oral imaging is "oral and maxillofacial medical imaging", which gradually evolved from the original "simple dental radiology". After X-rays were discovered in 1895, they were quickly used in dental X-rays. Modern dental medical imaging equipment usually refers to imaging equipment that is composed of X-ray generating devices and needs to generate images through X-rays. It mainly includes three categories: oral body cavity machine) and oral CT (CBCT).
In addition, there is a device that can generate images, which we call "oral scan". It is mainly used for orthodontic treatment. It performs 3D scanning of the inside of the mouth and generates accurate 3D models of teeth to help formulate orthodontic plans.
However, the oral scan does not include an X-ray generating device and can only generate images of the outside of the teeth. It cannot penetrate the teeth to generate images of the teeth and the interior of the mouth. Therefore, oral medical imaging equipment usually does not include an oral scan. Below, we will take you to learn more about the working principles and clinical applications of dental radiography machines, panoramic machines and CBCT.
2. Dental film machine
The dental radiograph machine is composed of an X-ray generating device and its supporting components. It has a simple principle and a small size. When taking pictures, you need to fix the film or detector to the teeth inside the mouth, and then use a machine to take pictures of them. Generally, 1-4 teeth can be taken at the same time to obtain a two-dimensional image of the inside of the teeth.
The dental radiograph machine is easy and quick to use, and can clearly display the crown and root of the tooth. It is often used for simple dental examinations such as dental caries, root fractures, root cysts, and for checking the effects of fillings and root canal treatments.

As a low-cost basic dental imaging equipment that many dental institutions will equip, dental radiographs also have their own shortcomings. Due to the small imaging field of view, dental radiographs can hardly obtain images of the outside of the teeth, so dental radiographs are generally not used for orthodontic or implant-related diagnosis and treatment.
3. Panoramic camera
The panoramic machine is a "curved tomographic X-ray machine". It uses curved tomographic photography technology to conduct comprehensive two-dimensional imaging of the entire mouth of teeth, periodontal tissue and adjacent anatomical structures through one exposure. The display range includes the entire oral cavity, just like a Take a "big picture of teeth".
Panoramic radiographs are often used for large-scale screening of oral diseases, such as screening for full-mouth tooth loss, multiple jaw lesions, jaw trauma, jaw deformities, and diagnosis of dental and periodontal diseases. Thanks to its wide imaging field of view, the panoramic machine can also play a data-assisted role in the field of orthodontics.

Compared with small dental films, the clarity and details of the interior of the teeth in panoramic imaging are slightly inferior, and because it is curved tomographic imaging, the final image will have serious distortion and distortion, and it is easy to produce overlapping ghost images. Therefore, in dental service fields such as dental implants that require very high definition of dental structure imaging, it is difficult to formulate accurate diagnosis and treatment plans solely by using panoramic machines.
4. Oral CBCT
Simply put, oral CBCT uses a large-area flat-panel detector to receive cone-shaped X-ray beams emitted by the X-ray source, thereby generating accurate and clear three-dimensional oral and maxillofacial images.
Today's CBCT technology can take three types of imaging: small field of view, medium field of view, and large field of view.

The small field of view can display some of the teeth and dentition of the upper and lower jaws, but it cannot display both sides of the temporomandibular joints and the third molars on both sides in one image. It is often used for detailed diagnosis of root canals, root fractures, tooth cracks, etc.;

The middle field of view can completely display the entire dentition, but cannot cover the entire width of the bilateral temporomandibular joints and maxillary sinuses. It is more suitable for clinical applications of single and multiple tooth implants, as well as the floor of the maxillary sinus, bilateral temporomandibular joints and Observation and diagnosis of partial maxillary sinus contour;

The large field of view can cover most of the cranial and maxillofacial surface, showing the complete shape from the maxilla to the mandible and the bilateral temporomandibular joints. It is suitable for clinical applications in the fields of maxillofacial dentition, maxillofacial surgery, full-mouth implants, and orthodontics. .
Another major advantage of CBCT is that supporting professional dental reading software is usually launched along with the equipment. Through the built-in function of the software, panoramic pictures without overlapping artifacts can be automatically generated, and "small dental pictures" of single or multiple teeth can also be obtained through image segmentation. The processed image will automatically repair distortion, making the image clearer and more detailed. It can also be rotated and observed in a three-dimensional plane, making it an excellent alternative to dental radiographs and panoramic cameras.
I believe you already have a very comprehensive understanding of various types of dental imaging equipment. In the current dental service industry, with high demand in the two fields of implantology and orthodontics, oral CBCT display with wider coverage of disease diagnosis and treatment, higher image quality, larger field of view, and easier operation is an indispensable feature of most dental clinics. Two options. Of course, dental radiographs and panoramic cameras can also be used as auxiliary radiography equipment to help diagnose and treat some basic oral diseases.