Freelance Dental Nurse

Making Acrylic Dentures

Katy Parsonage — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 12:03:11 +0000

There are at least five main stages to making acrylic dentures. Each stage involves input from the dentist, patient and a dental technician. The Five Main Stages to Making Acrylic Dentures Primary impressions Secondary impressions Bite registration Try-in Fitting Acrylic Dentures Stage 1 – Primary Impressions The first stage of making a denture involves the […]

The post Making Acrylic Dentures appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Making Cobalt Chrome Dentures

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 09:52:39 +0000

Cobalt chrome dentures are a less bulky, stronger alternative to acrylic dentures; however, they are considerably more expensive than acrylic dentures and are not a suitable type of denture for those who require full dentures due to the way that they are retained in the mouth. This type of denture consists of a metal framework […]

The post Making Cobalt Chrome Dentures appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Types of Dentures

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:34:36 +0000

When a patient wants a missing tooth or teeth to be replaced, they are usually given a number of possible treatment plans – one of which is often a denture. Those who have one or several teeth missing could have what is known as a partial denture. Those who are edentulous (have no existing teeth) […]

The post Types of Dentures appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Deciding to Have Dentures

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 09:27:09 +0000

Losing a tooth can be quite upsetting for patients, particularly if the tooth that is missing is in the anterior region of the mouth, however, patients should be aware that there are always treatment options available to them to replace a lost or missing tooth. There are many reasons why a tooth or several teeth […]

The post Deciding to Have Dentures appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT)

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 07:02:29 +0000

Cone beam computed technology has been in use in specialised medical centres and hospitals for a number of years. As technology progresses, the use of CBCT in dentistry increases, this is partly due to the increase in the popularity of things such as dental implants, but is also due to developments in equipment which have […]

The post Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Extra-oral Radiographs – Ideal Quality Criteria

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 16:45:35 +0000

Extra-Oral radiographs are taken with the image receptor placed outside of the patients’ mouth. These radiographs show large areas and are less defined than intra-oral radiographs. Different types of radiographs are taken to show different views of teeth, the head and jaws. Not all types of extra-oral radiograph have their own ‘Ideal Quality Criteria’ which […]

The post Extra-oral Radiographs – Ideal Quality Criteria appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Intra-Oral Radiographs – Ideal Quality Criteria

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 05:46:47 +0000

Intra-oral radiographs are those which are taken with the image receptor placed inside the mouth. The image produced should be detailed. Different types of intra-oral radiograph are taken to show different views of teeth, depending on what it is that the dentist would like to see and check. Each type of intra-oral radiograph has its […]

The post Intra-Oral Radiographs – Ideal Quality Criteria appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Digital Image Processing

Katy Parsonage — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 07:55:35 +0000

Digital images are processed and viewed on computers, there is no processing that is physically carried out by any member of the dental team. Digital radiographic images are captured and stored in pixels (which are square in shape) each individual pixel on the image receptor measures the x-ray absorption of the particular area of the […]

The post Radiography – Digital Image Processing appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Manual and Automatic Processing of Radiographic Film

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 06:47:28 +0000

Manual processing of Radiographic Film is carried out in a darkroom; this means that is completely light tight except for an appropriate safelight (usually a low watt red light) which is located just over a metre away from the working area. Tanks which hold the solutions and acceptable washing facilities are required, as are emersion […]

The post Manual and Automatic Processing of Radiographic Film appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Image Processing – Radiographic Film

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 07:50:42 +0000

Once a radiographic film and area the area of the mouth to be viewed have been exposed to x-ray photons, the image (or more specifically the latent image) has been captured. In order to view the image, the film must undergo specific chemical processing. There are several basic stages to the chemical developing process; Development […]

The post Image Processing – Radiographic Film appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Extra-oral Phosphor Plates

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 15:51:39 +0000

Extra-oral radiographs involve the image receptor being placed outside of the patients’ mouth; they are used to capture images of large areas but are less detailed than intra-oral radiographs. The image receptors required for this type of x-ray are large; the size of extra-oral phosphor plates is identical to extra-oral radiographic films, different sized films […]

The post Radiography – Extra-oral Phosphor Plates appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Intra-oral Phosphor Plates

Katy Parsonage — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 08:33:26 +0000

Intra-oral radiographs are taken with the image receptor placed inside a patient’s mouth; due to this these image receptors must be reasonably small. Intra-oral phosphor plates are available in the same sizes as intra-oral radiographic films; 31 x 41 mm 22 x 35 mm These sizes are used for bitewing and Periapical radiographs. 57 x […]

The post Radiography – Intra-oral Phosphor Plates appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Image Receptors – Phosphor Plates

Katy Parsonage — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 06:56:13 +0000

Phosphor plates are a re-useable type of digital radiographic film. Phosphor plates are unlike digital solid state sensors in that they are not directly linked to a computer, therefore the resultant image cannot be viewed immediately after the exposure has been made. Instead, the image captured on the plate must be scanned by a special […]

The post Radiography – Image Receptors – Phosphor Plates appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Extra-oral Solid State Sensors

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:56:57 +0000

Extra-oral solid state sensors are used outside of the patients’ mouth and take much larger but less detailed images than intra-oral radiographs. Because the images captured are large the extra-oral solid state sensors are also large, and are therefore extremely expensive, however because they are digital they are re-usable and so over time are cost […]

The post Radiography – Extra-oral Solid State Sensors appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography – Intra-oral Films

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 08:08:40 +0000

As previously mentioned in my blog post “Types of Radiographs” intra-oral films are placed inside a patients’ mouth when a radiograph is being taken, therefore they must be reasonably small in order to fit comfortably inside the mouth. There are several sizes available; 31 x 41 mm 22 x 35 mm These sizes are used […]

The post Radiography – Intra-oral Films appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Image Receptors – Radiographic Film

Katy Parsonage — Sun, 29 May 2011 21:15:48 +0000

Radiographic film is what most people think of as an x-ray film, it has been widely used for taking all kinds of radiographs for many years. Radiographic film is single-use only, so a new film must be used for each radiographic image required. The actual film itself is made up of four different components, in […]

The post Image Receptors – Radiographic Film appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Types of Radiographs

Katy Parsonage — Fri, 06 May 2011 11:27:36 +0000

Dental radiographs can be put into two main groups; intra-oral and extra-oral. Each specific dental radiograph, whether intra-oral or extra-oral is used to show a specific view of a particular area, it is important that the dentist chooses the correct type of radiograph to be taken in order to gather the information they need. The […]

The post Types of Radiographs appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Radiography in Dentistry

Katy Parsonage — Wed, 04 May 2011 07:58:09 +0000

Radiography (x-rays) is used in dentistry in order to show or confirm things to the dentist which can’t necessarily be seen or known with just clinical examination of a patient. Generally radiographs are taken of a patient to show; Caries and the extent of them The state of existing restorations Bone levels e.g. prior to […]

The post Radiography in Dentistry appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Orthodontic Appliances – Retainers

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 19:36:08 +0000

Once orthodontic treatment has been completed, (and records have been updated including final impressions for study models) and the ideal occlusion and appearance have been achieved, it is vital that all patients go through a period of retention in order to keep the teeth in their desired position, failure to do so can result in […]

The post Orthodontic Appliances – Retainers appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Fixed Orthodontic Appliances

Katy Parsonage — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 08:22:58 +0000

When a fixed Orthodontic appliance is fitted the time spent in the dental chair will be considerably longer than when having removable Orthodontic appliances fitted. Moisture control is essential at this stage of treatment so cotton wool rolls, dry guards and suction tips will be used throughout the procedure, most orthodontists will also use cheek […]

The post Fixed Orthodontic Appliances appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Removable Orthodontic Appliances

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 10:39:59 +0000

In order for removable orthodontic appliances to be made an impression or impressions will have to be taken. The impression is then disinfected and packaged and is sent, with written instructions, to a dental laboratory where a technician will make the appliance requested, this can often take a week or two. Once the appliance is […]

The post Removable Orthodontic Appliances appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Orthodontic Procedures – Consultation

Katy Parsonage — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 07:12:18 +0000

If a decision has been made to consider having orthodontic treatment (not using invisible appliances) many patients will want to know what kind of things are involved in various orthodontic procedures, really, they’d like to know what to expect. One thing which may put patients’ minds at ease is that orthodontics doesn’t usually involve the […]

The post Orthodontic Procedures – Consultation appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Invisible Orthodontic Appliances

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 14:47:22 +0000

There has been a fair amount of press, thanks to various celebrities, about the use of invisible orthodontic appliances in recent years. There are two main company’s who provide this treatment; Clearstep and Invisalign, both of which work in very similar ways. The orthodontic treatment discussed in this post is purely for private orthodontic treatment […]

The post Invisible Orthodontic Appliances appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

What types of Orthodontic treatment are there?

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 10:39:48 +0000

Orthodontic Treatment – There are three main types of orthodontic appliances, each of which do a different job; Removable appliances – these can be put in and taken out of the mouth by the patient, although they should ONLY be removed for cleaning purposes. Fixed appliances – these are fixed to the patients teeth and […]

The post What types of Orthodontic treatment are there? appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Why is Orthodontics Needed?

Katy Parsonage — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 11:52:22 +0000

Orthodontics is used to correct the position of teeth and jaws, and aims to create ideal (class I) occlusion, it also aims to create the most effective functionality of patients’ teeth. If teeth do not erupt in their ideal position or if they are moved out of position due to trauma or digit sucking for […]

The post Why is Orthodontics Needed? appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

What is Orthodontics?

Katy Parsonage — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 14:17:32 +0000

Orthodontic treatment is basically concerned with correcting and changing the position of teeth to achieve better function and appearance, this is generally achieved by the use of braces. Orthodontic appliances or ‘braces’ as they’re more commonly known as, place specific forces on specific teeth in order to move and realign poorly positioned teeth, sometimes this […]

The post What is Orthodontics? appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

New Regulations in Dentistry – HTM 01-05 Decontamination

Katy Parsonage — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 15:46:55 +0000

In 2009 the Department of Health published document ‘HTM 01-05 decontamination – guidance’ for dental practices. This document is aimed in particular at primary care dental practices in the U.K. and is designed to ensure that all dental practices meet ‘essential quality requirements’ and ‘best practice’ standards set by the Department of Health. Although there […]

The post New Regulations in Dentistry – HTM 01-05 Decontamination appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

First Aid in Dental Practices

Katy Parsonage — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 08:11:52 +0000

There are some situations which may occur in a dental practice that will require first aid treatment but may not be life threatening, for example broken bones, fractures, sprains, cuts, burns and poisoning. In each dental practice there must be at least two qualified first aiders who are adequately trained to deal with all accidents […]

The post First Aid in Dental Practices appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.

Recommended Dental Uniform Suppliers and Product Reviews

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 14:23:54 +0000

During my time as a dental nurse I have worn many different types of dental uniform and have had them from various suppliers, I have created a list of companies and have given a few side notes, almost a customer review really, to help you to make a start on choosing a dental uniform for […]

Medical Emergencies in Dental Practices

Katy Parsonage — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 12:37:46 +0000

Accidents and medical emergencies can happen to anybody at any time and in any place, if either takes place in a dental practice there should be staff that are adequately trained to deal with the problem quickly and correctly. Medical Emergencies All members of staff in practice should be trained to deal with, or assist […]

The post Medical Emergencies in Dental Practices appeared first on Freelance Dental Nurse.