Digital X-Rays give us extremely low radiation views of the inside of your teeth and the supporting bone and gums without radiating the rest of your body. We can discover problems that we can’t see with a mirror and explorer visual exam which is still good but old technology from the 1800's.
Dr. Anderson and the team use the intraoral camera for 2 purposes. First, it gives us an additional angle to see some areas of your mouth better and in a different light. Second, we can show you what we are seeing in your mouth and why you may want to have us restore broken down teeth and gums. A picture is worth a thousand words.
You may or may not be happy with the conditions you see but the more you know the better decisions you can make for yourself. We also use the camera to document progress and improvement to your oral health and to document lesions that may or may not turn out to be cancerous. With photos, we can communicate with the oral surgeons for additional insight, saving you time and a possible trip to the surgeon.
In 2018 Alexandria Dental Clinic introduced the Solea laser to Central Minnesota, being only the 8th Solea in the state. Dr. Anderson's skill and experience now allow him to do 90% of fillings with No Drill, No Needle, No Numbness, and No Pain.
In addition we use other lasers for scanning, diagnosing decay, tissue healing, and gum treatment. Laser light is incredibly accurate and actually promotes and speeds healing of the tissue. Lasers minimize bleeding and post-surgical bacterial infections and often, anesthesia, numbing, and sutures are not needed after procedures when a laser is used.
iTero® Intraoral Scanner
One of our newest pieces of technology equipment is our iTero 3D scanner. It allows us to take photos of your smile which are computer-assembled into a perfect 3-D picture of your teeth and gums. We can also use it to show you the results you can get with Invisalign®.
The largest benefit of producing images with our scanner is that you won’t have to get impressions made, which can be quite unpleasant. You won’t have to deal with the unpleasant taste of the gooey material, or the discomfort of the molding trays. Instead, the scanning process is quite comfortable, and you can breathe normally and take breaks any time during the 2-4 minute procedure.