OPG

What Is An OPG and What Does It Look For?

A dental complaint or painful jaw can be incredibly challenging for the sufferer, impacting day-to-day life and causing associated problems like headaches and restricted movement. Even a simple dental infection has the potential to cause wider health complaints, leading to chronic pain, time off work and limits to certain physical activities.  That’s why it’s important for any issue relating to the lower face, jaw or neck to be examined by a medical professional, and an effective way of getting a full view of the potential causes is to complete an OPG.  

What is an OPG?

OPG stands for Orthopantomogram but can also be known as a ‘Panorex’.

Using tomography (a technique that allows for a cross-sectional view through the human body), it offers a panoramic X ray image of the jaw, permitting the clinician a broad view of the area between each ear, including the jaw joints, teeth, maxillary sinuses, nasal cavity and surrounding bones.

What does an OPG look for?

An OPG is designed to look for abnormalities in the area it scans and is the ideal procedure if you’re suffering with a painful jaw. It can discover cysts, bone fractures, tumours and much more. It’s also a good technique to use for understanding temporomandibular disorders. Sometimes there is not an obvious cause of temporomandibular disorders, yet the discomfort can be unbearable. An OPG allows the technician to identify a root cause of a painful jaw (for example, an injury or arthritis) which can then pave the way for an appropriate treatment plan.

How do I know if I need an OPG?

 

If you’ve got a dental complaint or a painful jaw that has been bothering you for a while, an OPG can help determine the cause of the problem. An OPG could be necessary if you:

·         Have suffered a new or historic injury to the head, face, neck or jaw

·         Feel yourself regularly clenching or grinding your teeth

·         Hear clicking or popping when you talk, laugh or eat

·         Have any pain or tenderness to the lower face

·         Find that your jaw gets stuck in an open position or is restricted in its movement

·         Experience frequent headaches

What are the next steps?

At Bond Radiology, we like to ensure our patients are given a thorough examination of the lower face and jaw to ensure all problems relating to a painful jaw are identified and addressed. An OPG is a straight-forward, painless procedure which involves a machine taking images from your lower face, neck and jaw. You will remain fully clothed but will need to remove jewellery. The procedure takes about 10 minutes in total and has very few known side effects. While some exposure to radiation is apparent, the associated risks are minimal and the benefits of identifying the underlying condition far outweigh the risks. Once your results come back, the clinician will be able to go through the findings and give you a treatment plan if required.

There is no reason to suffer silently with jaw and tooth complaints. An OPG provides a comprehensive overview of your jaw health and will be the first steps to rectifying any problems you’re experiencing.

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