"I"Cat

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Scanning Protocol

"I"Cat Scans in Dentistry

There are many advantages over traditional CT scans. First, with cone beam CT scanning the patient is subjected to far less radiation, because we use a focused beam with a physically larger sensor allowing us to capture all the axial slices covering the face and the jaws in one scan. Since we capture the entire volume with one scan, there is no redundant overlap of slices, resulting in major reduction of radiation. Reducing exposure to radiation while maximizing the information content should be a goal of all diagnostic imaging and we accomplish that very effectively with our i-CAT system.

A panoramic radiographic provides a 2-dimensional depiction of the patient. All panoramic radiographs are distorted up to 300% in the horizontal plane and up to 50% in the vertical plane. A cone beam CT scan, such as our i-CAT, provides a true reproduction of the patient’s anatomy. The dimensions represented in the cone beam imaging correspond exactly to the patient. There is no distortion. The dimensions are accurate.
MRI’s are more useful for soft tissue imaging.

After scanning the patient the doctor can generate an exact reproduction of the patient’s mouth, face and jaw area. The doctor can identify the location and dimensions of all anatomic structures such as the maxillary sinus or inferior alveolar nerve or mental foramen nerve. The doctor can also measure the exact dimensions and quality of the bone, which is crucial for implant placing procedures.

The i-CAT(TM) Cone Beam 3-D Imaging System produces immediate three-dimensional images of patients’ critical anatomy, typically in under one minute. The i-CAT ™ provides complete views of all oral and maxillofacial structures in an easy to use, cost effective, in-office system that allows dental specialists to dramatically enhance their patient care in a variety of ways.
The immediate three-dimensional reconstruction of a patient’s mouth, face, and jaw areas, with the i-CAT ™ enhances doctor/patient communication by allowing doctors to share a visual diagnosis with their patients. This gives patients a better understanding of their treatment options and more confidence when going into treatment.

The i-CAT software is compatible with other software programs from implant manufacturers and you can use their software with our imaging to plan with great accuracy and confidence which kind of implant to place. You can use their software to place implants of varying design, width and length into our i-CAT imaging to determine the most efficacious design, site, angulation and dimensions. There is no guesswork involved. What you plan is what you get.

Compared to medical scanners, Cone Beam Scanning is more accurate while reducing a patient’s exposure to radiation depending on the hospital scanner type and age by upto 95%. Below we have included the various protocols and doeses compared to the standard digital OPG.

The uses are varied: Pre-surgical implant treatment planning, preparing to remove impacted third molars, determining how sinus grafts and ridge augmentations have healed, and determining the ideal position for a single-tooth replacements, are just some of the benefits of Cone Beam Scanning Technology.

Since Cone Beam Scanning permits multiple slices through the axial, sagittal and coronal views, the guesswork is removed when it is critical to determine the width of edentulous ridges, whether or not cancellous bone exists between cortical plates, the position of supernumerary and developing tooth buds, if sockets have filled with bones, if irregularities exist to the condyles, where the mandibular nerve is relative to an impacted tooth and implant sites, or to visualize the borders of a cyst or tumor. Cone Beam Scanning has an added benefit in that it can take the maxilla and mandible in a single scan.