Guideline on Prescribing Dental Radiographs for Infants, Children, Adolecents, and Persons with Special Health Care Needs.

Resident: Adam J. Bottrill
Date: 23MAR11
Region: Providence
Article title: Guideline on Prescribing Dental Radiographs for Infants, Children, Adolescents, and Persons with Special Health Care Needs.
Journal: Pediatric Dentistry Reference Manual
Page #s: 272-274
Vol:No Date: 2010
Major topic: Dental Radiographs
Minor topic(s): None
Type of Article: Guidelines

Main Purpose: This guideline is intended to help practitioners make clinical decisions concerning appropriate selection of dental radiographs as part of an oral evaluation of infants, children, adolescents, and persons with special health care needs.

Key points in the article discussion:

I. General:

A. The recommendations in past ADA/FDA guidelines were developed to serve as an ADJUNCT to the dentist's professional judgment.
B. Timing of initial radiographic exam should be based on individual circumstances.
C. Should be performed only when there is an expectation that the Dx yield will affect patient care.
D. If radiographs of diagnostic quality are unobtainable, practitioner should confer with parent to decide on proper management techniques (in office, increased recall frequency, OR etc...)
E. ALARA (Time, Distance, Shielding)
F. Cone Beam CT is being researched and investigated for potential use in dentistry

II. Recommendations:

























A. Recommendations are subject to clinical judgement and may not apply to every patient.
B. Protective aprons and thyroid collars should be used whenever possible.
1. Strongly recommended for children, pregnant women, and women of child-bearing age.
C. When using CBCT, should follow all guidelines of the AAOMR and provide written supplement to any imaging that is included in the patient chart.


Assessment of Article: Radiation and radiographs can be a touchy subject. It's good to have "policy" to back up our decisions regarding this aspect of patient care.