Dental x-rays are a very important part of dental office technical procedures to ensure good dental health of patients. When patients are at the dentist usually twice a year, x-rays are taken. Dental x-rays are used as a preventive measure and as a treatment aide to help identify potential dental problems. Dental x-rays allow the dentist to see your teeth, bone levels, and surrounding bones in your facial anatomy. Without dental x-rays there is a potential risk of undiagnosed dental decay, infections, hereditary defects of both the soft and hard tissues, and other diseases. There are a few ways to develop x-rays; they include an automatic film processing, quick dip processing and manual processing. Today, I will be instructing you on how to develop dental x-rays using the manual processing procedure. We assume you have taken the proper number of x-rays in need of developing. The tools we'll need to develop the x-rays are:.
Latex gloves- the latex gloves are needed when you are removing the protective cover of the x-ray film that has been contaminated.
Paper towels- the paper towel is used to set the x-rays on it to prevent contamination from the counter surface.
Dark room with safe light (Red light bulb)- The dark room must have a lock on the door and be completely dark inside the room when the door is shut to prevent over exposure to the film. The dark room must also have a safe light. This light is just like the typical light bulb with the exception of it being a red bulb and lower wattage. .
Thermometer for dip tanks- the thermometer is inside of the dip tank. The temperature of the solution in the tanks needs to remain consistently between 65 to 70 degrees. So the development of the x-rays is accurate and can maintain the visual aid through the years. .
X-ray film- the x-ray film cover should be clear of any fluids before opening. Dental film prior to exposure should be stored in a dry cool place or preferably in a refrigerator.