orthodontist question - x-rays?

[nightcat]

Is it always absolutely necessary for x-rays prior to braces?
My ds is borderline NHS, so not too severe, but he is not supposed to have x-rays, so does anyone know if it can still be done without - or am I wasting my time?

I have never known anyone have braces without xrays as they use them to check angulation of teeth and jaw relations. You would also want to check there is no hidden decay prior to a brace going in as 2 years down the line a small hole can be a wopping cavity. Why can't your ds have xrays?

Thanks MMM, the reason is that my ds has severely impaired DNA repair and at very high risk of cancer from any sources due to v. fragile DNA.
I tried asking a receptionist at the ortho, but she didn't know.

Has he had the initial consultation yet? A chat with the orthodontist sounds advisable. Certainly you would want to know every xray was justifiable in your ds' case, I think that there are requirements for them to have pre and post orthodontic treatment xrays if done on the NHS so it might be something that has to be run past the PCT if they are happy just to have moulds of his teeth. I hope you can get this resolved without xrays.

If they insist on x-rays, and you want to go ahead with braces, then I'd insist that they were done in a dental hospital, under the advice of the diagnostic radiology physics/radiation protection physics group. They will be able to check the exact dose that he would receive from an xray, and calculate the most dose efficient imaging schema, and the best equipment set to use. A regular orthodontist won't know any of this

I think an x-ray for this would have to be done at the hospital anyway as it requires an OPG, which is an x-ray of the entire jaw. The exact dose will be recorded. All of the hospital radiogaphers know about dose limitation, it's part of our training and job. Dentists also recieve training but it's not as indepth as a radiographer's training.

thanks guys
I have just enquired at the hospital to find out more, no answers on the spot as they need to look into it, but clearly a standard ortho is not an option then.

The dosages are different for different images, patient size is also a factor. It's an OPG that she'll need though.