Here you will find everything related to cephalometric analysis, digital radiography, Dental imaging basically everything ceph-related.

Are Clear Aligners Right for Your Patient?

  1. CephX | AI Driven Dental Services
/in Blog

When you’re an orthodontic provider, there comes a time in certain patient cases where you have to determine if particular individuals are or are not candidates for the type of treatment they’re asking for; particularly if it’s clear aligners.
Because removable aligners rely on different mechanisms of pressure and tooth movement to work properly, there are bound to be situations where a patient cannot pursue this avenue of treatment. It’s up to you as an educated provider to determine if this is the case…as well as how to break the bad news to your patient.

Your Experience as an Orthodontic Provider

From new orthodontic providers to more experienced specialists, there will always be cases where you feel uncertain or have a gut response about how you need to proceed with treatment. Strong willed patients that want a specific type of braces may make this decision process even more challenging to work through.

Although clear alignment technology has expanded the situations that can be corrected, there remain several concerns that may contraindicate treatment. Some of the most common, include:

  • Inadequate crown height
  • Unerupted 2nd molars
  • Fixed dental prosthetics, such as bridges
  • The presence of dental implants
  • Chronic grinding/clenching habits
  • Crowding or gaps with spaces that need to be moved more than 6mm
  • More than 3-4mm of an overjet, overbite, or midline discrepancy
  • The presence of an open bite

While minor variations of these conditions can be treated with removable aligners, most of the time they will need to be addressed by an expert. If you have experience with easier or more moderate variations, then it may be an easier decision to make when it comes to initiating treatment. Otherwise, it’s suggested to get a second opinion or recommend another type of orthodontic therapy.

Getting a Second Opinion

What happens when you’re torn between starting treatment or saying “no”? Thanks to CephX’s innovative AlgoCeph technology, your patient’s cephalometric radiograph can be traced and analyzed with seconds and provide you with measurements and recommendations before the patient ever leaves the office.

This efficient, cloud based process allows you to quickly access cephalometric analysis, cephalometric superimposition, profile overlay and other features – all within seconds.

Reviewing the Treatment Plan

Patients tend to be more receptive to treatment recommendations when they’re educated about the pros and cons of other alternatives. It’s not just your job to tell them when clear aligners aren’t an option; it’s your duty to tell them why. Otherwise, they’re apt to “doctor hop” until they find an orthodontist that will say ok to the treatment, even if they know it’s not appropriate. When you educate, you show how much you care about the wellbeing of your patients. Not only does this earn the respect of your prospective patients, it adds quality and value to the services you offer in your practice.

The Patient’s Perspective

It’s hard to let something go, especially when you’ve had your heart set on it for a long time. For an adult to consider getting braces, sometimes it means they’re only willing to move forward with treatment if they can have a particular type of braces. Usually, that means clear aligners. It’s up to you to decide if their goals can be met, or another option is more appropriate.

The Ultimatum

There’s a lot of psychology that comes into play when you need to convince a patient that it’s better to have traditional braces or no treatment at all. Because you know the likely outcome, it’s up to you to explain to the patient that it isn’t worth pursuing a clear alignment tray system. The key is to point out the major factors involved in their decision to get treatment:

Money —Usually, a person will be paying more for clear aligners than they would with a conventional option. For the achievable results, is it going to be worth the investment…especially if you’re not able to reach them? Make it clear that even after paying for a full course of treatment, there may still be remaining alignment needs, disqualifying the effectiveness of this particular method or even doubling the total cost of their orthodontic therapy.

Time — All of those trips to the office, the maintenance at home, and cleaning your aligners…is it worth it? A traditional system would be able to move the teeth more efficiently, allowing your patients to complete treatment sooner and in fewer appointments. When it comes down to taking time off of work and paying for treatment, conventional braces may be more cost effective from every standpoint.

Aesthetics — What is your patient’s primary goal of treatment? Do they want a particular tooth moved? If you can’t make that happen with clear aligners, but could do it precisely with a strategically placed bracket, the trade-off should be worth it. Knowing what the end results will be — as opposed to guessing what they will be — should be enough to convince the patient of the best treatment.

Health — Correcting the alignment and occlusion of the teeth and jaws will be beneficial to long-term health and function. Explain the risk factors of allowing the condition to go uncorrected, vs. what complications could occur if alignment was attempted with a removable system.

Making Other Treatments Feel More Inviting

Because aesthetics is often the tilting point between traditional and clear braces, it’s vital to take advantage of discussing realistic options that can help. Ceramic brackets and low-profile arch wires should be kept on hand to show your patient — in person — what they look like. Once they’ve seen how cosmetically appealing they really are, your patients will be more open to the idea of traditional systems. Suddenly, the idea of “all or nothing” doesn’t seem quite so bad.

As an orthodontic provider, it’s your responsibility to only render services that will improve or maintain your patients’ oral health. When that means saying “no” to a particular treatment, you can know you’re doing the right thing.

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and The History of Orthodontics

Is Single Arch Treatment Good for Your Patients?

  1. CephX | AI Driven Dental Services
/in Blog

As an orthodontic provider, you often have to weigh your patients’ personal requests with what you know is the most appropriate form of treatment. This is especially true in the situation that an individual asks for rapid “fast” braces, or single-arch orthodontics where appliances are only affixed to the upper teeth.

For Problem Specific Tooth Movement

Many orthodontic patients request single-arch treatment because they only want braces on their top front teeth. They feel this may be more comfortable, affordable, and faster.

In instances where minor tooth movement is all that is necessary, this alternative may be appropriate. For example, a mild diastema between the central incisors can be closed, which also reduces slight overbites. Assuming that the patient will be content with the aesthetic results (and the provider with the occlusal relationships,) this type of alternative treatment may be a viable option.

Mild crowding, tooth overlap, or orthodontic relapse may also be adequately treated with single arch ortho on a case-by-case basis.

Mixed Dentitions

Younger patients who are undergoing “phase 1” or interceptive treatments are some of the most common individuals to need single arch treatment. This is usually due to the physical maturation of the oral anatomy, tooth development, or eruptive stages. In such instances, single arch therapies can make it more effective to lay the groundwork for more complex comprehensive phase 2 treatments later on.

Determining “if single arch treatment is right” or not may be a simple decision, solely due to the patient’s oral anatomy.

When Single-Arch Braces Should be Ruled Out

There is only so much that can be done with overall tooth alignment if the upper and lower teeth do not occlude properly. Single-arch treatment could result in an open bite, cross bite, or fail to correct an overbite if the patient refuses to have braces placed on the opposite arch. Over time, this might contribute to occlusal wear, fractured dental work, or TMJD.

It’s easy for a dental expert to understand this, but a patient may not. A good analogy is comparing single arch treatment to screwing the lid onto a jar, by only holding the lid. The final fit wouldn’t be what it could have if you had a “grip” on both the jar and lid, as it would if you had braces on both the upper and lower arches at the same time.

Discuss the Patient’s Concern for Getting “Only Single Arch” Treatment

Many patients assume that asking their orthodontist to “only put braces on their top teeth” will result in a 50% reduction in the overall cost of their orthodontic therapy. As a dental professional, you know otherwise.

If a patient is hesitant to accept a comprehensive orthodontic treatment plan, find out if they have any questions or need to understand aspects of the plan better. Offer financing information up front, as some individuals may be too embarrassed to ask, and thus appear to be close minded about starting treatment.

Should the conversation turn the direction of “getting braces on one arch will be much cheaper,” redirect the discussion to conclude that there is not a significant price difference between comprehensive (upper/lower arch) and single-arch therapy, and why. This information should be presented in any situation that a patient requests single arch treatment.

“Superelastic” Archwires and Clear Aligners

Modern orthodontic brands are beginning to target this market with specially designed systems that use force optimized biomechanics for a single-arch-only treatment. If attachments, rubber bands, TADs, or other extensions aren’t primarily mandatory for the given situation, a clear aligner or superplastic archwire system may do the job.

Additional Analysis to Make the Final Call

With digital cephalometric analysis performed by radiographic experts like the team at CephX, AlgoCeph technology makes it possible to plan the most accurate and efficient orthodontic case for your patient. In instances such as single arch treatment where you may want a second opinion, the AlgoCeph reading can be performed in an efficient timeframe without referring your patient elsewhere or lowering your productivity.

Determining Your Options

One of the foundations of treatment planning and case presentation is presenting your patient with all viable options to treat their concerns, and weigh the advantages of each. For orthodontic providers who tend to have a bias against single arch ortho cases, it can be difficult to encourage the patient to accept a care plan when this option is overlooked.

Knowing that the patient will decline any therapies aside from one-arch braces should be weighed against whether or not the therapy would be doing harm over good. Sure, it may not be the most preferred method of treatment — especially if you were planning the course of therapy for yourself or your own child — but if that is all the patient is willing to consider, this must be kept in mind.

Is it Time to Think Outside of the Box?

In dentistry, technology and treatments can change significantly from one decade to the next. What we’re taught in school may be completely obsolete once a few years have passed and new studies back findings in more recent clinical research studies. When it comes to single arch treatment, it’s vital to go into the planning process with an open mind. Given the case-by-case nature of patients in general, there will be exceptions that are worth your consideration.

If you’re new to single-arch therapies, aim to work with fellow specialists who can help you treatment plan the case during the initial diagnosis and assessment phases; that way you can ensure a positive outcome from the beginning of therapy.

Orthodontic Specialists Consider all of the Options

At CephX, our x-ray analysis experts can efficiently measure and assess the digital images of your patient’s radiographs, so that you have all of the information on hand during your case presentation. This saves you valuable time without risking the quality of care your office provides. The cephalometric analysis is available on demand, and all records are securely backed up at the highest level of privacy. Visit www.CephX.com today to learn more about on-demand orthodontic cephalometric analysis for providers on a worldwide scale.

Read more about Why Patients Leave Before Treatment – And How DSOs Can Win Them Back
and Orthodontic Adverse Effects – Helping Patients Understand Them

Retainers and Maintenance: Preserving Your Patients’ Investment

  1. CephX | AI Driven Dental Services
/in Blog

One of the most overlooked — yet extremely important — stages of orthodontic therapy is that of retention. After all, we all know that relapse is a serious concern for anyone who has recently completed their orthodontic treatment. Yet for many patients, there just isn’t as much concern for a retainer as there is for their braces.

Emphasize Home Care

Your patients remember how important it was to keep their braces, appliances, and other orthodontia completely clean. While they’re still in the same mindset, shift that concern to the maintenance of their retainers before they ever leave your office.

The closer you compare retainers with braces, the easier it is to shift that concern so that they are one and the same. For example, you may want to roll over some of the same “rules,” like:

  • Clean your retainer with lukewarm tap water. Hot water could cause removable appliances to warp and not fit properly.
  • Use only approved cleansers to lift away debris and prevent buildup, as harsh chemicals could lead to the material becoming brittle, breaking, or discolored.
  • Do not eat with your (removable) retainer in place, as it could cause it to break.
  • Clean around fixed retainers with the appropriate oral hygiene aids, such as a floss threader or water flosser. Don’t let the patient leave without them first watching and then demonstrating the proper oral hygiene method during their retainer “try-in” appointment.
  • Encourage them to see their dentist regularly for preventive care appointments.
  • Removable retainers must be worn for a set number of hours per day, or number of days per week, to avoid tooth movement. (Patients with clear removable aligners may relate to this example the most.)
  • If something breaks or comes loose, call your office office immediately to have it repaired.

Fixed vs. Removable Retainers

Compliance with any orthodontic treatment is hard. Between removable bands and clear aligners, adding in a removable retainer is just as challenging. There are many benefits to incorporating fixed retainers, especially for patients that may be less likely to comply with wearing a removable device.

However, it’s vital that these individuals have a firm understanding of how to clean areas that are not visible on the facial surfaces of their teeth. Someone who wore lingual braces may be more likely to feel dedicated about flossing under a fixed lingual retainer than, say, someone who wore removable alignment trays.

Removable retainers are still sometimes the best option. When selecting the type of retainer, opting for a clear Essix-type of prosthesis may be better for your adult patients than a Hawley version. When aesthetics is a concern, adults are more likely to better care for their retainer and clean it as advised. Not to mention, many of them like the idea of utilizing their clear retainer as a whitening tray.

More than likely, you’ll know which is the better option for your individual patients based on their past compliance, age, maturity level, and the likelihood of relapse due to their unique anatomy.

Part of planning for your retainer will be keeping records on hand like models and cephalometric x-rays. The extra angles of interpretation allow you to take various orofacial anatomical structures into consideration: not just the alignment of the teeth. Not to mention that digital ceph films can easily (and securely) be stored in the cloud by off-site providers like CephX for you to conveniently access them anytime in the future. When and if anything needs to be analyzed or re-analyzed months to years down the road, the data is available at your fingertips.

Follow Up Appointments: Make Them Worthwhile

Once an adult or teenager gets out of braces, most orthodontists never see or hear from them again…unless there’s a problem. The best way to avoid common problems — like lost or broken retainers, and tooth relapse — is to intermittently assess their bite.

Like a jeweler who inspects a wedding ring or diamond jewelry once a year to ensure that the prongs are holding everything in place, an orthodontic patient can benefit from having his or her bite reassessed on an annual basis from their orthodontist.

The intermittent appointments allow you to monitor retainer use, oral hygiene, maintenance of their prosthesis, and if any adjustments need to be made. As with other type of dental appliances, an orthodontic retainer can gradually wear out or break. Communicate with your patient that this is normal, and they need to have a new retainer made 5-10 years down the road. You might even want to consider offering the retainer for free as a “courtesy” to people who make their annual follow-up appointments and have been wearing their previous retainer on a routine basis.

Retention is for Life

It can’t be emphasized too much: an orthodontic retainer needs to be worn regularly for life. Even if it’s 20 years down the road, this must be stressed to your patients. Unfortunately, many orthodontic offices do not push this concept enough. As such, many adults come back for re-treatments due to lack of retention strategies following treatment as a teenager or busy college student.

For individuals that have — or still are battling — oral health conditions such as periodontitis or TMJ disorder, maintaining proper tooth placement is part of a comprehensive approach to their overall dental care. Be sure to get their family dentist or specialist on board by sending a letter back to their practice once your treatment has been completed. If you haven’t heard from the patient in a while, consider asking his or her dental provider to refer them back for a follow-up appointment.

Implementing Digitally Advanced Strategies to Enhance Care

In the days of digital patient information and images, it’s important to know that your patients’ data can be stored safely and securely…especially when you don’t see them for months at a time. At CephX, our cloud based record keeping systems are secured and accessible from any device, anywhere in the world. Now you can securely back up your patients’ old x-rays and other records without them taking up extra space in your office. Contact us today to learn more about our digital AlgoCeph analysis and more.

Read more about Latest Technology In Dentistry 
and Orthodontic Trends in 2015

How to Get Your Kids Excited About Getting Braces

  1. CephX | AI Driven Dental Services
/in Blog

A lot of kids look forward to the day when they finally get to have their braces put on. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for all of them. Either they may have a bad outlook on dental care in general, have fears related to discomfort, or even struggle with sensory issues when another person is working on their mouth.

Ask Lots of Questions

Orthodontic therapy can be just as much about a teen’s self-esteem as it is their dental health. During the initial exam or consultation, ask children what they like best about their smile, or if there’s anything they wish they could change. A concerned parent may think that diastema between 8 and 9 is a big concern, while your patient feels it adds character!

Connect with each child personally and add notes into his or her file to remember their interests or hobbies the next time you see them. Are they headed to the state soccer tournament? Did they get a new pet? Maybe they’re taking up a new hobby that they can’t wait to share. With all of the face-to-face time that you’ll be getting in the coming months, a personal connection is vital. With kids growing up in your office, they’ll usually leave as a “friend” once treatment is over with.

Let Them See the Pictures!

Kids love to see pictures of themselves. Whether it’s a profile shot for their digital file, a cephalometric x-ray, or a 3D digital scan, there’s something about being able to sit back and see what you “really” look like.

In orthodontics, we’re able to capture a number of different digital images, scans, photos, and gather other data that a general practice usually does not. With adults, it’s common to use these images to “co-plan” treatment, but we often overlook children’s interest in the same information. Just because they might not understand the same things an adult patient would doesn’t mean they aren’t beneficial during the orthodontic process.

Show-Tell-Do

Use pictures and non-invasive equipment to show kids what’s going to happen during the orthodontic application process. This is a great opportunity to have models on hand or before/after flip charts to go over.

Explain things in simple, easy-to-understand language that is age appropriate. Remember to leave out negative phrases like “hurt,” “sore,” etc. Stick with positive phrases that deflect anxiety and make things seem more straightforward. Talk through the treatment in a non-threatening manner, leaving “scarier” topics like surgery to private conversations with the parent.

Finally, talk the child through what’s going on during the actual braces application. They’ll hear you repeating what you’ve already discussed, so they know exactly what to anticipate.

Get Them Involved

Have a mirror handy during exams, so that kids can watch what’s going on, or even use a cheek retractor while you’re taking photos. With them being a part of the action, they’ll feel independent and responsible.

Go High-Tech

Some offices use mobile apps or iPads in the office with interactive videos to review home care, treatments, before-and-after shots, and what’s expected. Kids love high-tech tools, so these are a great resource to utilize in private practices…they also save time on patient education, so that your team doesn’t have to repeat the same thing 20 times each day.

Make Oral Hygiene Fun Again

One of the biggest challenges during orthodontic treatment is paying attention to good oral hygiene practices. Everyday brushing or flossing becomes mundane at times, especially if there are extra appliances to clean around or the child doesn’t already have good brushing habits.

You can encourage mom or dad to invest in special toothpaste, electronic toothbrushes, or water flossers to make tooth brushing a little more fun than it usually is. Or you can consider making these aids available as part of the package price of your treatment. When kids are the only one in the household to have a fun new dental “toy” to play with, they’ll be a bit more inclined to put it to good use.

Reward Good Behavior

Positive reinforcement is a great motivator for things like:

  • Keeping your orthodontic appointments
  • Showing up on time
  • Maintaining good oral hygiene
  • Wearing removable appliances or orthodontic aids as directed
  • Eating foods that are safe for orthodontic appliances
  • Following home care instructions

Consider offering quarterly rewards or drawings in your office. Let kids earn tickets or entries into the drawing when they do thinks like stay cavity free, have good brushing habits, keep appointments, etc.

Don’t forget about having a “hall of fame” on the wall. Kids usually love to have their photos taken. Consider asking them if they want their picture on the “new braces club” board, or on the wall with everyone’s “after” portrait. It’s an exciting thing to look forward to, once they do finally get their braces on.

Highlight Customized Appliances

From different shaped brackets to unique band colors, kids love to customize their smiles with their favorite school colors and more. Find out who their favorite sports teams are or show them which selections might go along with the current holiday. They’ll have something to look forward to at each appointment.

There are even companies now that allow orthodontists and dentists to use brackets that are shaped like stars, footballs, and other popular shapes. For someone who is going to be wearing appliances on their smile for several months at a time, this can add a fun twist on conventional orthodontic therapy.

Be There for Them

Attentive care is vital to running a successful orthodontic business. Your patients — whether adult or child — want an attentive staff and provider that pays attention to them. One of the ways you can do this is by offering accurate therapies that are carefully mapped out, for the most successful outcome possible.

At CephX, we utilize innovative AlgoCeph technology so that orthodontic providers around the world can access professional image analysis within a matter of minutes. The data is securely stored and backed up, so that you don’t have to worry about additional privacy concerns. Contact us today and schedule a consultation to learn more!

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How the World Wide Web Brings Peer Dentist Together for the Better Good

  1. CephX | AI Driven Dental Services
/in Blog

It’s no surprise that the internet has changed dentistry just as much as the rest of the world around us.

While you might initially think that the world wide web has nothing to do with the way you treat a patient in your dental chair, we at CephX beg to differ. In fact, dentists that go online are able to provide resources and services to their patients that they otherwise never would be able to.

Here are a few examples…

Study Groups and Continuing Education

Being in a dental study club doesn’t mean driving an hour away once a month anymore. Now you can find like-minded professionals who share cases, experiences, and data online 24/7. If you’re passionate about a particular type of orthodontic therapy or new technique, you can share your same interests with others…even if there’s no one in your physical vicinity.

Cloud sharing resources allow you to safely and securely share images or notes regarding cases to offer advice, experience, or insight on new data that’s coming out.

Formal CE providers are finding that mail-in self-taught courses are a thing of the past. While many state boards used to not grant credit toward online learning courses, many are starting to change that. Depending on where you live, most areas allow dentists to learn online or at least fill a portion of their continuing education requirements with credits offered over the internet by approved sources.

If the nation’s top colleges can do it, so can continuing dental education providers!

On-Demand Videos for Training and Professional Development

Distance learning has been around for well over a decade. In the past, it was restricted to text you read on your own time and a mail-in quiz or essay that you had to complete. Gradually it phased into videos you watched on a home television and had to mail back. Thankfully, it’s better now than it ever has been before. Now, people are learning just because they want to…not because it’s a mandatory part of their license renewal.

Today’s modern self-directed education involves live webinars where you can interact with experts in other time zones, or oven YouTube surgical procedures for a first-hand look at a particular technique. Internet learning and on-demand educational resources for dentists provides some of the best learning tools than have ever been available. Some might even say there’s too much to choose from!

If there’s anything you want to learn about to improve your current skills — whether it’s interceptive orthodontic techniques or mapping out anatomical landmarks — it’s simply at your fingertips. You just have to hop online and do a quick search for it.

Real-Life Advice for Hard to Manage / Unique Patient Cases

Even the most experienced dental practitioner can sometimes have their doubts about a particular patient case. Maybe they’ve run into a wall when it comes to treating a chronic problem or relapse issue that has never come up before. Networking online with other dentists and specialists enables providers to receive guidance from those who have dealt with similar patient cases in a successful manner. As such, they can troubleshoot problems before things get worse, and provide their patient with the best outcome possible. Rather than having to refer your patient out for a second opinion, you can have extra eyes see the same things that you do, without ever having to step foot inside of your practice.

Digital Dentistry and Teledentistry Enhances Quality of Care by Widening Their Access to Other Technology

With the aid of teledentistry methods and the ability to electronically transfer patient data (such as digital ceph films,) dentists can access resources that might not otherwise be available in their own physical practice.

For instance, if a particular piece of technology is available for use digitally, the dentist can upload their patient’s information or data to remotely access the tools made available. This way they can bypass more tedious, unfamiliar, or lengthy steps that would otherwise have to be used. How else is it possible for labs on the completely opposite side of the world to work in real-time with orthodontic specialists and providers? It isn’t!

Work Smarter. Not Harder.

Being a committed worker is important, no matter if you’re an orthodontist or the receptionist setting appointments. Hard work means good work and respect…both among your peers as well as your dentists. But sometimes it’s better to work smarter instead of pouring extra energy into your work, when there’s a better way to do things. Being exhausted doesn’t necessarily mean that you did things better.

That’s exactly what today’s modern orthodontic providers have to do:

decide when to do the work themselves, implement technology that makes the task easier, or delegate it to someone who can do it for them. With the internet, the latter two are no problem. Whether you’re crowdsourcing for better ways to treat something, looking for a specialist to refer to, or need to assign the step to someone who can put extra time back into your hands, there are more options than you previously thought.

Case in Point: Revolutionizing Your Orthodontic Services

At CephX we know first-hand how the internet has revolutionized dental care. Our experts work with orthodontists and dentists worldwide to provide fast, live, reliable resources in patient care. As such, our clients are able to confidently treat their patients in a more efficient and predictable manner.

That’s exactly what today’s modern orthodontic providers have to do:

What does CephX do to help? We use technology that’s compatible with all operating systems and devices, so that dentists can store patient records and receive professional cephalometric analysis within a matter of seconds. When you don’t have time to spare or would rather an expert provide the service for you, our dentists and orthodontists accurately examine and measure your patient’s digital images to record all of the information that you need.

CephX users can access records anywhere (even their mobile device) with the confidence of knowing their patient records are securely stored.

Ready to find out more about our on demand AlgoCeph and analysis services? Contact CephX today. We’re a leading global provider of cephalometric diagnostics and labeling, empowering dentists and orthodontics with more freedom and time for hands-on clinical patient care. Request your complimentary consultation to get started.

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