Technology

Without x-rays, dentists wouldn’t be able to see problems like cavities that are deep within your tooth and not detectable during a visual dental exam in Bellevue, NE. Routine dental x-rays provide our dental care team with valuable information that enables us to provide you with the right treatment for your needs.

Digital x-rays are leading-edge technology that has answered a lot of concerns dental patients often have. Most importantly, by using digital x-rays, we reduce your radiation exposure by as much as 80 percent compared to film x-rays. Taking x-rays is more comfortable for you because we use flat digital sensors that easily fit in your mouth and have no hard edges.

Digital x-rays are also an invaluable educational tool; we take the x-ray, and since the images are digital, in just a few moments, we can share them with you on your chairside monitor.

Our 68005 dentists manipulate the image to make it larger, smaller, zoom in, or rotate it so that you can see exactly what’s happening inside your tooth and why we recommend treatment. We store your digital x-rays on our in-house network, so they are always safe and secure and readily available for reference whenever we need them.

A note about the frequency of dental x-rays: We only take x-rays as needed to monitor your oral health and diagnose conditions. Our dental care team understands your concerns, and they will always explain why we recommend an x-ray and how it will benefit you.

Digital dental x-rays are invaluable, but there are cases where our dentists and specialists need to see your entire mouth in one image. A panoramic digital x-ray shows all your upper and lower teeth and how they work together. Panoramic x-rays produce a different type of image, but they offer all the safety benefits of digital x-rays described above.

Our Bellevue, NE dental team uses panoramic x-rays to:

• Detect the position of all your teeth
• Identify impacted teeth
• Find jaw abnormalities to diagnose TMJ
• Diagnose tumors, growths, or cysts
• Plan Invisalign treatment
• Plan dental implant placement
• Plan tooth extractions

When we take a panoramic x-ray, you stand still in front of the machine that rotates around your head and takes a continuous image of your mouth. Since our dentists in Bellevue, NE take panoramic x-rays outside of the mouth, they’re also an excellent alternative for young children, special needs patients, or patients with a strong gag reflex.

Intraoral cameras solve one of the greatest mysteries of life—what your dentist actually sees when they look in your mouth! Instead of trying to get a glimpse of the problem with a small mirror, using intraoral cameras, our dentists make you part of the diagnostic process in ways that were never possible before. As we move a small, handheld digital camera over your teeth, real-time, magnified images appear on your chairside monitor. 

Far from being TMI, our patients in Bellevue find intraoral cameras to be an invaluable educational tool that helps them understand their oral health needs. Now you can see in detail problems like broken or fractured dental fillings, hairline cracks, spots of decay, and gum conditions for yourself. You'll appreciate having this information because it empowers you to be part of the diagnose and planning of your treatment.

We understand that most people don’t like the idea of dentistry, but at Kennedy Dental, we strive every day to change that perception. Different patients have different triggers for their dental anxiety, and often, one of them is the sounds and vibrations of the equipment we use.

For this reason, our Bellevue, NE dentists have invested in electric handpieces in place of air-driven equipment. The benefits are that using electric handpieces minimizes vibration and the high-pitched whining sound that triggers anxiety. Another is that dentists can be more efficient when performing services and procedures, which means less time in the dental chair for you.

Many people who avoid root canals do so because they don’t like the sensations or the length of time they have to sit in the dental chair. Rotary endodontics help us address both these anxiety triggers.

Manual steel files used in the past to clean out root canals took more time and produced uncomfortable noises and vibration. With state-of-the-art rotary endodontics, dentists today can provide root canal treatment in Bellevue that is:

• Faster
• Quieter
• More comfortable
• Less uncomfortable vibration
• More precise treatment
• More reliable outcomes

When used in combination with dental sedation like nitrous oxide, rotary endodontics result in a root canal procedure that’s more efficient and comfortable than ever before.

Life is stressful enough, and at Kennedy Dental, we’re sensitive to our patients' needs and will always go the extra mile to ensure your comfort. We are pleased to offer nitrous oxide in Bellevue, NE because we want you to be able to comfortably get the treatment you need then get on with your busy life.

Nitrous oxide is a slightly sweet-smelling gas that you inhale through a small nasal mask. Just breathe normally, and you’ll start to feel a wave of relaxation and a strong sense of well-being. Nitrous oxide takes the edge off of your anxiety, but it's not so strong that it will knock you out or leave you feeling drowsy after your appointment.

The calming effects of nitrous last only as long as you’re inhaling the gas, and at the end of your treatment, we’ll switch the flow from nitrous to pure oxygen. By the time you leave our 68005 dental office with a healthier smile, you’ll feel alert, refreshed, and ready to take on the rest of your day.

We use leading-edge technology at Kennedy Dental to enhance your comfort, improve treatment outcomes, streamline procedures, and include you in the decision-making process. Using digital technology allows us to store all of your medical history, drug information, dental charts, x-rays, and intraoral images securely on our in-house network.

When our dentists in Bellevue need to make a diagnosis or monitor an ongoing condition, all your information is immediately available at their fingertips. And, with your permission, we can easily transmit your records to insurance companies or outside specialists when needed.

We've tried to think of everything to improve your comfort when you're at Kennedy Dental. We are pleased to offer TVs in all our treatment rooms so you can catch up with the news or watch the latest episode of your favorite show while we work to improve your oral health.