Comparative imaging of the jaws

Explosive growth in high-technology imaging continues in dentistry as in all health sciences. Some new technology will find its way into general and some specialty dental practices; two examples, digital intraoral radiography and multimodality panoramic machines, are reviewed. New developments in the application of current imaging procedures (both conventional and "high tech") to diagnosis and management of diseases and injuries of the jaws, muscles of mastication, and salivary glands are presented. Recent information suggests that the risk of radiation-induced cancer in exposed populations may be greater than had been recognized. The impact of this data on both occupational and patient radiation exposure in dentistry is reviewed.