In the last few months since we have been doing ceramic implants, we’ve been able to utilize an important piece of technology: CBCT scans. What is a CBCT scan? And how are we using it? Why is it so important? We will answer those questions in this blog post.

First of all, what is a CBCT scan? CBCT stands for Cone Beam Computed Tomography. It is a type of x-ray that is divergent and forms a cone and gives us a 3 dimensional image. During the CBCT scan, the scanning machine rotates around the patient’s head, similar to a CAT scan, and takes about 600 different images. These images are then reconstructed and a 3D voxel is produced from the data. Special software is needed to read these scans, but once loaded, they can be manipulated and visualized on a computer screen for diagnosis and planning.