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Uses of camera

1. Diagnosis

Digital photography can be a huge aid in diagnosing dental problems. Digital cameras capture images
with superb quality that, in many cases, surpasses print and slide film. Taking digital photos of the
patient’s teeth both inside and out of the mouth can help the dentist see problems that might have
been missed.

2) Treatment-planning

Once the dental pathology has been diagnosed with the use of digital photography and digital
radiography, it can be augmented with visual exams and laser cavity detectors. This makes treatment-
planning easier and faster. Viewing an entire arch or retracted smile at once is a lot easier than
examining a single tooth with a small, quarter-sized mouth mirror. Frequently, dental problems are
missed, not because the dentist is not thorough, but because he or she does not have the time to
examine the mouth tooth by tooth with a mouth mirror. Digital photography allows the dentist to see
practically everything at once or with just a few images. Dental care can then be treatment-planned and
offered.

3) Image-editing

In addition to diagnosing and treatment-planning dental- related pathology such as cavities, cracks,
occlusal wear, and cancer, cosmetic concerns can be treatment-planned faster and easier with digital
photography. With the use of digital-editing software such as DENTRIX® Image (now sold by Dexis),
Adobe Photoshop, and Thumbs Plus, the patient smiles can be recreated digitally in seconds. Together,
the dental team and patient can analyze concerns and make changes to the digital images prior to any
irreversible treatment being performed. This helps ensure a successful outcome.

4) Case presentation

The key to any successful practice is case presentation. Let’s face it - a dental practice is a business and
profits must be made. This can be a win-win relationship between the practice and patient. The patient
receives a healthier mouth and improved esthetics, if desired. The dental practice receives increased
income leading to higher profits. This relationship centers around the ability of the team to
communicate the dental pathology to the patient and reassure the patient that his or her elective needs
will be met successfully. Many dental teams are not comfortable with the selling aspect of dentistry.
Digital photography allows patients to see the pathology for themselves, which decreases the effort it
takes to explain both the problems and solutions.
5) Insurance reimbursement

Insurance is a part of most dental practices. Whether you accept assignment of benefits or not, it is still
a good idea for a service-oriented dentist to help patients receive their dental benefits. Digital photos
can be sent by e-mail or printed (along with digital radiographs) and mailed to insurance companies.
Even if the insurance company denies payment, patients will perceive the dentist has their best interests
at heart. How many times do dentists hear patients say, “If my insurance does not pay for it, then I must
not need it.” With digital photos, instead of rejecting treatment because “I must not need it,” patients
will ask, “What do you mean my insurer won’t pay for my crown? Can’t they see the crack in my tooth
shown in the photo?”

6) Lab communication

Lab communication can make or break a dental case, particularly in the esthetic area. Digital cameras
are ideal for lab communication. The quality or resolution of today’s digital cameras exceeds that of film.
The cameras are very easy to use, even for a novice photographer. The images are digital, so they can be
burned to a CD, printed, or even e-mailed to your laboratory.

7) Specialist communication

Using digital photography to communicate with your specialist is often overlooked by dentists. While the
dentist must be respectful of HIPAA rules, e-mailing patient images is a great way to have an online
conference with your periodontist, oral surgeon, or endodontist. You can have an almost instantaneous
conference by taking a few photos of the patient’s problems, e-mailing them in a secure manner to your
specialist, and then having a phone conference while the patient is still in the chair. This saves the
patient’s time and further enhances the relationship among the general dentist, patient, and specialist.

8) Internal marketing

Displaying photos of your work in your office is a great way to communicate your skills and services to
patients. This is especially true for new patients who may not be aware of your esthetic talents. Digital
photos can be taken of your cases and patients, printed out on an inexpensive inkjet printer, and
displayed throughout your office. You can even have your patients write testimonials on the prints!

9) External marketing

Print ads for dental practices are becoming more mainstream. Dentists are finally realizing they are
running a business. To survive, they need new patients on a steady basis. While stock photos can be
used effectively, nothing is better than having your own patients featured in your print ads. The
probability of your patient being recognized in the ads is a great reason to use your own photography.

Today’s digital cameras can easily take professional-level photos that look like you hired a professional
photographer to take them. A number of courses are now available to dentists focusing on marketing
and fashion-style photography as opposed to simple clinical photography.

10) Accreditation and Fellowship

Receiving recognition from your peers through accreditation and fellowship in organizations such as the
Academy of Comprehensive Esthetics or the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry is a fantastic
honor. Every dentist should strive to continually improve his or her clinical skills. These organizations
and others like them allow dentists to be recognized for achieving a higher level of skills than when they
graduated from dental school. Digital photography allows dentists to demonstrate and evaluate their
cases on a highly magnified level. By evaluating their cases in this way, they can take steps to improve
their skills.

Advantage and disadvantage

advantages and disadvantages of digital cameras from experts’ experience. Before starting if you are
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Before turning to the consideration of the advantages of best digital cameras, it is worth paying
attention to the disadvantages. The first drawback of digital cameras is their high cost compared to film
cameras of the same level.

In fact, do not compare the prices of film and digital cameras. Digital cameras allow you to create better
quality pictures and have much more functions than film cameras. In addition, owners of digital cameras
do not need to spend money on buying films and worry about the number of frames remaining.

Another disadvantage of digital photographs is the more expensive printing of photographs. This is
offset by the fact that you can select the best photos on your computer and print only them.

Digital cameras need to take some time to process and save the photo before the next frame can be
taken, but in modern cameras this drawback is eliminated, since the process of processing and saving
the image takes a split second and practically does not affect the speed of work. Some models of
modern digital cameras are capable of doing up to 60 frames per second while maintaining maximum
resolution.

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