Dental CBCT equipment and performance issues

Dental cone beam computed tomography (CBCT), also known as digital volumetric tomography was developed in the late 1990s and is now increasingly available in clinical practice. It can provide high resolution cross-sectional images of teeth and the maxillofacial region with applications in all branches of dentistry. As a new imaging modality, there were no established suspension levels at a European level. A literature review, encompassing scientific, professional publications and existing national guidelines was performed in an attempt to develop a set of suspension levels for dental CBCT, using additional expert opinion from the members of the European Academy of dento-maxillo-facial radiology. A limited set of suspension levels has been devised for aspects of the X-ray tube and generator, dosimetry, field-of-view, alignment and image quality. These should be kept under review in the light of growing experience of testing equipment in practice.