Looking at imaging

EJ: A practice investing in a 3D scanner can reduce the amount of time the patient has to spend in the dental chair in the sense that they don’t have to be referred to another practice; a dentist can look at something right away, much faster and in a much more accurate way. It also takes the guess work out of treatment, the more you can see the less you have to try and anticipate as to what’s there. It also encourages treatment plan acceptance as the patient can see and more easily understand the images themselves.

 

Every dentist should have a camera so a patient can be shown what they can’t see, so they can understand and buy into it. The 3D image does the same thing; it helps explain the diagnosis to patients and the need for treatment.

 

EJ: The first people to really feel the benefit of 3D were implantologists because 3D really facilitates that procedure of planning - knowing where to drill and how deep to go, knowing if you can miss a canal and so on. There are some software companies that do planning for multiple implants, and they have to have 3D images for this. So, a single implantologist would benefit from having a 3D machine. Endodontists are also starting to look at 3D now, and there are certain specialists who are beginning to see the benefits of trying to find canals that you can’t normally see. For them what is most important is the sensor and having the image right away.

 

It does not have to be a large practice that invests in the technology; the decision tends to be more down to what the treatments are. Though because of the outlay for 3D equipment you do tend to find it more in practices that have maybe two/three dentists working.

 

EJ: Currently it would be harder to Looking at imaging justify just for general dentistry. If the dose came down it might be more of a possibility as 3D is better than 2D. One 3D scan is probably worth three to five 2D scans, but you might need to do two or three of them to see what you want. At the moment a GDP can always refer to a practice that has a 3D scanner if needs be. The important thing at the moment for GDPs is to know about the potential of 3D, and to go on courses and seminars, become familiar with it, understand the software. I could encourage all dentists to find an opportunity and become aware of what the scan looks like and how to read it on the 3D viewer. Even if a GDP doesn’t want to invest in a scanner, I think he or she should be aware of the technology and shouldn’t be afraid of dealing with 3D scans.

 

EJ: The Carestream CS9300 is very easy to use once positioning has been mastered, and there are a lot of guides in the machine to help with this. Training is needed for using the software, managing and understanding and manipulating the images as well as how to use them to educate patients. The software comes as part of the purchase, and it is an important part. When you buy a piece of equipment like the CS9300 the software you have is the same as all Carestream equipment

software, the only difference is the module for managing the 3D imaging.

 

Investing in imaging equipment can be a huge step for a practice, what do you think motivates people to make a particular purchase?

 

EJ: Most practices are looking for new technology and more often than not they will find this by word of mouth recommendations. Inevitably dentists will be looking for product reliability and product support, and for the equipment

itself to be producing high quality images. Ease of use is equally important to practitioners who want to improve their workflow and patient care.

 

 

EJ: To maintain the equipment there is very minimal consumable cost, but a maintenance contract is advisable as it is an expensive piece of machinery that can cost between £40k-70k. I would recommend anyone purchasing 3D imaging equipment talk to a dealer and maybe have a maintenance cost and that would include upgrades.

 

There is a return on that investment too, a practice doing around 20/25 scans a month could potentially pay back the machine in less than three years.

 

The warranty for the CS9300 is two years (it can be extended to five) and there are sometimes promotion plans that Carestream do so you’re getting the most out of that five year warranty. What a dentist could do when they’ve got one of these machines is have events where local dentists come in who could potentially refer patients who will pay for the scan. The referring dentist will still need a 3D viewer (which we would give them with the software) so they could do their own analysis. Therefore it is also possible to get return on your investment by doing referrals.

 

 

EJ: The future for scanning and X-ray will include more products that are continuously more reliable, and will be 3D products getting cheaper. Sensors will become more robust, and there will be more workflow and functionality, that help faster imaging.