Intra-oral Camera

As dental practitioners, our role is to be your partner in your oral health, helping you to understand your examination and diagnosis, and guide you in determining what treatments are best for your particular situation. One of the ways we achieve that goal is through using devices like the intra-oral camera in order to assist with patient education.

An intra-oral camera is a hand-held video camera that is about the size of a pen that we use to take pictures of your teeth, magnify them about 25 times, and then project them onto a special screen. The camera is equipped with a plastic, disposable sheath for hygienic purposes. With this type of device, you can actually see your whole mouth in great detail – decay, plaque deposits, damaged fillings, and worn teeth are blown up on video for your consideration. Finally, we print images for your file, and if you like, we can also provide you with printed images to take home with you.

See it for Yourself

Before intra-oral cameras, it was often difficult to convey to patients the extent of their dental problems, like periodontal disease and decay. Now, we use intra-oral cameras every day, and patients gain a better understanding of the state of their dental health than they do with lengthy explanations – it really is true that a picture is worth a thousand words! With our intra-oral camera, we can display, zoom and pause during your oral examination so that you can see for yourself exactly which areas will need to be treated.

The Advantages

When you can be a full participant in your oral examination, actually seeing what we see, you’re better equipped to consider various treatment options – it’s an amazingly effective tool that helps you to make informed decisions about your dental health.

We also find that patients tend to be more forthcoming with questions when they can see what’s happening in their mouths, and they understand oral hygiene issues and treatment options more fully. The intra-oral camera offers a true picture of the state of your mouth, and makes it easier for you to understand how to improve your hygiene and overall oral health.

  • The intra-oral camera offers very powerful magnification, so it’s much easier to see cavities and the beginnings of gum disease before they become serious problems.
  • Also, if you’re undergoing a course of treatments, the images that we save can provide a sort of “road map” that shows us how well your treatment is progressing.
  • Finally, if your insurance company requires proof of your condition before they’ll approve a specific treatment, the intra-oral camera can provide that proof.
  • If you’re curious about intra-oral cameras, let us know when you come for your next appointment – we’d be more than happy to provide you with a demonstration.

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