Cheekbones, narrowness of jaws, the position of
teeth and the formation of the hard palate make
the taking of accurate x-ray pictures a challenge.
For these reasons x-ray pictures of teeth and jaws
quite often fail to disclose the presence of
infection or what kind of treatment might be
required, contrary to generally accepted views of
most dentists and patients.
SEVERS DISEASE
Cracks in teeth are almost never visible on x-ray
pictures.
The extent of bone loss around a tooth, though felt
to indicate the severity of its infection, does not
do so. Doctors Basker and Stern, in separate
studies, reported that 85 to 100 percent of dental
granulomas and redicular cysts do not contain
bacteria. This does not mean the tooth itself is
not infected.
When the dentist removes or treats a tooth but the
patients continues to have a toothache, it may seem
the wrong tooth was removed. The pictures in this
chapter show how a second tooth is often involved.
Because lateral canals can contain infection, dentists
have been taught to advise root filled teeth be x-rayed
each year or two.
None of this implies the use of x-ray pictures is to no
avail. Quite the contrary, good x-ray pictures often
disclose disease conditions which should receive
immediate attention if the patient's health is not to
be jeopardized.
Both pointed out that the visual areas of abnormalities
on x-ray pictures are not necessarily areas of infection
harboring bacteria. Dr. Stern stated that, for the most
part, such visible areas are lisions that have been
identified as radicular cysts and granulomas.
The granulomas are reactive lesions caused by bacterial
destruction originating from an infeced root canal that
opens into that area. Experiments indicate the granuloma
is a response of cells to the bacteria in the root canal,
but, at the same time, bacteria cultures taken from the
areas of lost bone at the root end of the tooth have
proven negative 85 to 100 percent of the time.
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