Mt Druitt Hospital installs Soredex Scanora 3D CBCT system

Mt Druitt Hospital in Sydney's west has invested in a new Soredex Scanora 3D cone beam imaging system to enhance its diagnostic capabilities for its large base of dental patients.

The Scanora 3D offers fast imaging with low dose, suitable for most diagnostic tasks. Multiple fields of view are available and a high resolution mode images down to a voxel size of 0.133 mm. In addition, at the press of a button, the unit automatically switches between 3D and a dedicated panoramic imaging mode.

Mt Druitt Hospital Dental Department Head Dr Margaret Vautin said the Medical Imaging Department replaced its old panoramic x-ray machine with the new OPG/3D CBCT scanner recently in July.

"We see up to 800 patients every month and the new machine is better designed, easier to use and produces higher quality images using a much lower radiation dose compared to conventional CT," Dr Vautin said.

"We were impressed with the technology and the three-dimensional images, which help us detect problems easier, diagnose more quickly, explore areas that require advanced treatments and plan surgery if required.

"The scanner is also designed so that the patient is seated comfortably throughout the x-ray rather than lying down in an enclosed machine, which is great for patients who have difficulty lying down or those who suffer from claustrophobia," she said.

Dr Vautin said the high resolution three dimensional images taken by the Scanora 3D were particularly important to assist with the planning of dental implants and other jaw surgery, including removal of impacted teeth.

As a case in point, an 84-year-old male recently presented with two small radio-opaque bodies over the left ramus of his mandible, which was visible on a normal OPG film. The dentist was puzzled by its presence. With the CBCT and its 3D reconstructed images, it shows clearly it is calcification in his left tonsil (Figures 2-7).

Dentists and specialists can refer patients to Mt Druitt Hospital for cone beam scanning or an panoramic imaging that is bulk billed to Medicare with no gap payment required. Dentists can receive the scan on disk complete with viewing software or hardcopies can also be supplied. All scans include a radiologist's report. For more information or to make a booking, call (02) 9881-1696.