Your Dental CT Scan
Why a 3D image matters when planning implants, when we scan and when we don't, what the dose really means, and how your scan becomes a surgical guide.
Why Might I Need a Dental CT Scan, and Is It Safe?
A dental CT scan, often called CBCT (cone beam CT), is an X-ray taken in three dimensions. It reveals how wide and tall your jawbone is, where the nerve runs through the lower jaw, and the position of the sinuses and tooth roots: information a flat X-ray simply can't provide. The radiation dose falls between that of a small dental X-ray and a hospital body scan, much closer to the small X-ray, and we only recommend a scan when the result will shape your treatment. At Lanark it costs £160 on our own scanner, and it's built into full-arch fees.
Flat X-Ray or 3D Scan?
Think of a standard dental X-ray as a snapshot taken from the side. It gives a rough idea of bone height and shows the outline of the roots, but it flattens everything into a single layer. From it, you can't judge how thick the bone is between cheek and tongue, or precisely how deep the nerve lies.
A cone beam CT scan records a complete section of the jaw in 3D. We can turn it on screen, cut through it at whatever angle we choose and measure to within a fraction of a millimetre. For implant work, that replaces estimates with a proper plan.
What the Scan Reveals
- How wide and tall the bone is at the gap, which tells us whether an implant will fit and what size it should be
- Bone density, giving a rough sense of how firm or soft it is
- The inferior alveolar nerve, which runs inside the lower jaw and supplies feeling to your lower lip
- The floor of the sinus over the upper back teeth, which often lies close to the ridge
- Roots of nearby teeth, so an implant keeps a safe distance from them
- Problems you can't see, such as old infection, cysts or fragments of root left behind
Considering Implants?
Book a free implant consultation in Lanark. When a scan is justified, we can usually take it during that visit.
When a Scan Is Used
| Treatment | What the scan adds |
|---|---|
| One or more implants | The safe size, position and angle for each implant |
| Possible bone graft | Whether the bone is sufficient, or how much has to be rebuilt |
| Implant-retained dentures | The right sites for the implants that hold the denture |
| Full-arch treatment | Angled implant positions that miss the nerve and sinus, often with no graft |
| An implant causing problems | How much bone remains around it |
At routine dental examinations we rely on small digital X-rays, which show everything needed for a fraction of the dose. Every CT scan needs a justification: the 3D information has to be capable of changing the treatment we provide, or we don't take it. If you don't need a scan, we'll say so.
The Radiation Dose
Every X-ray uses a small amount of ionising radiation, so we aim for the smallest dose that will still tell us what we need to know. A cone beam scan delivers more than one small dental film, because it covers a bigger volume, yet far less than a hospital CT scanner, which images a much larger part of the body. We keep the dose down by scanning only the section of jaw we need and turning the machine's settings down as far as image clarity allows.
Under UK regulations, a clinician has to justify each X-ray exposure, which is why nobody can book a scan simply by asking for one. If you're pregnant, or could be, please tell us. Implant planning can nearly always be postponed, and we'd normally wait.
Having the Scan
It takes very little time, and the only things touching you are a chin rest and a small block you bite on. Metal close to the head blurs the image, so we'll ask you to take off glasses, jewellery and hair clips, and to remove any denture. You keep still, standing or seated, for a few seconds while the arm of the machine passes once around your head. There's no tunnel and no injection.
Within a minute or two the images are on screen. During your consultation Dr Kalsi will talk you through them, pointing out the ridge, the nerve canal and where an implant would go. You're welcome to a copy.
Turning the Scan Into a Plan
Your treatment plan starts with the scan. On the 3D model, Dr Kalsi sets a virtual implant in place and fine-tunes its length, width, angle and depth to match your bone while keeping well clear of the nerve and sinus. He plans the crown's position at the same time, so the implant is aimed correctly for the tooth that will sit on it. His background in engineering shows in how carefully that geometry is worked out.
From that plan a surgical guide is 3D-printed. On the day it fits in your mouth and, through MegaGen R2 guided surgery, directs each MegaGen AnyRidge implant to the planned spot. Because the position is decided in advance, the gum opening can often be smaller. For full arches, this kind of custom guide belongs to the Premium Guided Zirconia pathway; there, and on Same-Day, the temporary teeth can be prepared ahead of time. If another clinic has told you, on the strength of a flat X-ray alone, that implants won't work, a scan gives solid ground for a second opinion.
Fees
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| CT scan | £160 (£144 on a membership plan) |
| Scan for a patient referred by another clinician | £160 |
| Full-arch treatment (scan included), per arch | From £9,300 |
| Small X-ray (no charge for plan members) | £10 |
There's no fee for the implant consultation itself. We take a £20 deposit when you book and return it within 7 days of your visit. You pay for a scan only if you need one. For full-arch treatment, each of our four pathways has one price per jaw that already includes the scan, the planning, the implants and the final teeth; extractions, temporary teeth and a custom surgical guide depend on the pathway. 1 All other fees are in our implant cost guide.
Referring a Patient
Dentists and other registered clinicians in Lanark, throughout Clydesdale and further afield can refer patients to us for cone beam imaging (£160) or an intraoral scan on our iTero scanner (£120). 1 You'll receive the images within 48 hours, sent securely in DICOM format for your own planning software. We provide the images only, without a written radiology report.
Self-referral for X-rays isn't allowed. What anyone can do is book a free consultation with us; should a scan turn out to be justified, it's taken at that appointment. You'll find the referral form on our referrals page, while the technology page covers our other equipment.
Questions
This guide is general information, not a diagnosis. A dentist needs to examine you to say what is right for your teeth.