Inside Dentistry January 2007 90 The why, the how, and the now. A Primer on Cone Beam CT Allan G. Farman, BDS, PhD, MBA, DSc Professor of Radiology and Imaging Science Department of Surgical and Hospital Dentistry School of Dentistry, University of Louisville Louisvill

If and when you are in the market for new technology, you will be faced with a difficult decision-making process. You may not have extensive hands-on experience with the technology you are considering, yet, depending on who you talk to, you can get abundant, and often contradicting, information.

During the past 2 years, a number of new instruments have been introduced that allow a practitioner to perform similar scans in the dental office. Called cone beam tomography units, these new acquisition units are smaller, limited CT scanners, which take images of the maxilla, mandible, and temporomandibular joint areas.

This article will discuss different camera options to consider when purchasing a digital camera, and hopefully it will clear up some common misconceptions about digital cameras and their applications.

One device that is an asset to any practice is an electronic shade-taking device. This type of technology offers minimal overhead expense, and a great indirect return on investment (ROI).

Digital radiography is rapidly becoming the standard of care in dentistry. As the adoption of this technology becomes widespread, it is important to differentiate and understand the unique qualities of available systems.

Inside Dentistry October 2007 80 The why, the how, and the now. Integrating Laser Technology into a General Dental Practice Martin Jablow, DMD Private Practice Woodbridge, New Jersey It has been  almost 20 years since the first dental laser became

In the spring of 2003 I attended the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) meeting in Orlando, Florida. I attended a seminar by Stewart Rosenberg on the many uses of lasers in dentistry. This proved to be the start of my journey into the exciting field of lasers.

CAD/CAM—computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing—has been around for a long time. It has been used in industrial manufacturing for many years, creating everything from tiny parts, such as nuts and bolts, to very large parts, such as aircraft wings.

While we wait for intraoral scanners to gain more acceptance, impressions and models can be sent to laboratories right now for these new processes.