In preparation for her oral health career, Dr. Kathryn Philpott-Hill secured her doctor of dental surgery (DDS) from the Louisiana State University School of Dentistry. Dr. Kathryn Philpott-Hill operated her own private dental practice in Sylva, North Carolina, where she used diagnostic tools like X-rays to search for signs of tooth decay.
X-rays are a type of radiation capable of penetrating the tissues of the body. When delivered in small doses as part of a diagnostic procedure, X-rays can produce vivid pictures of the body’s internal structures, including that of the bones and teeth.
Dentists rely on X-rays to diagnose a variety of different oral health problems. For example, bitewing X-rays permit dentists to check for tooth decay in the area between teeth as well as for signs of bone depletion caused by advanced gum disease.
Experts recommend that adults without an elevated risk of tooth decay undergo a bitewing X-ray once every 24 to 36 months. The recommendations also suggest that teens undergo the procedure one every 18 to 36 months and that children should undergo it once every 12 to 24 months.
Other types of dental X-rays include panoramic X-rays, which take images of the whole mouth, and periapical X-rays, which take images of individual teeth.
