Diagnodent is another product of science and technology that focuses on finding and treating tooth decay. Diagnodent is a tool that can even detect decays so small that they are not even visible yet. With this, small and starting dental problems are treated early and prevented to turn into severe health issues that require complicated and even more costly procedures.

Since diagnodent is new to the public, people have a lot of questions about it. The following are the more frequent ones being asked, enlisted below with the answers.

-- Does it hurt?
No, diagnodent does not include procedures that will make a patient experience pain. It features a similar energy level to a laser pointer. The laser beam or energy emitted by this tool is completely harmless to the tissues around inside the mouth.

-- How does it work?
First, the tool should be calibrated. Second, teeth should be clean. Teeth are scanned using the laser beam emitted by this tool which is harmless. The cavities are identified by the read-out in digital form produced by the countertop unit. The degree of decay within the tooth is defined by the amount of fluorescent the machine detected.

-- How long does this dental procedure technique take?
Scanning will only take a few minutes, and that's just it.

-- What does the tool actually measure?
Diagnodent measures the fluorescence within a tooth. When the laser beam is used to scan teeth, a two-way optical hand piece quantifies the reflected light energy from the laser. Diagnodent is used with a specific wavelength. Using this, a healthy clean tooth will reflect very little fluorescence (or none at all) and the fluorescent signify readings on the display.

-- What are the benefits of diagnodent to a dental patient?
Decays are detected earlier. This will keep new decays from developing into more complicated dental problems. This will reduced the amount of money one will need in keeping his or her oral health in good condition.

-- Is it effective with composite resin restorations?
No. Composite resin restorations fluoresce.

-- Is it effective with amalgam?
Diagnodent will provide an accurate reading when used with caries at the margin.

-- Can diagnodent be used on primary teeth?
Yes. Diagnodent is both accurate in detecting decays in permanent and even primary teeth.

-- What are the disadvantages of the conventional dental methods?
Traditional techniques in finding and treating decays are not that much effective in detecting decays. These methods may even not detect 50% of the decays.

-- How long has this technology been around?
Europe has been using this device for quite a few years now. The FDA recently approved the dentists of using laser-using tools for detecting cavities in the United States.
-- Where do most tooth decays start nowadays?
Today, these mostly start in areas that are hard to see. They start in valleys and canyon-like parts of the surface of the teeth.

-- Why are pit and valley cavity detection given more importance today than before?
The use of fluoride in toothpastes and water has strengthened the teeth enamel. Teeth have become more resistant to damage. However, the pits and valleys are not much protected.

-- Why are conventional techniques like x-rays not effective in seeing the cavities in the pits and valleys?
Pits and valleys are hidden from direct views of the dentists. Even with the use of x-rays, these parts are hidden from the direction where the images are taken from.

-- With today's presence of diagnodent, are x-rays still important?
Diagnodent is for finding cavities on the teeth surface we use for biting. X-rays are tools for finding cavities on the roots and in between teeth.

-- Why should we be concerned with sides of our teeth that we cannot see?
Decays progressed. They are not always detectable, especially at the start. Even while decay is still a mild problem, it will progress and may penetrate inward. If not given attention, this will eventually lead to decays that destroy teeth from the inside out.

-- Why are dental probes not enough to find cavities in pits and valleys?
Probes may appear too large to detect the certain cavities. It may be due to the location of the cavity or it may be because the cavity is newly formed and too small. Detection of cavities in pits and valleys is difficult also because tooth surface usually appears intact.

The above answers the questions most frequently asked. If still unsure, it is best to consult with a dentist who has experienced using diagnodent.