Current status on the application of image processing of digital intraoral radiographs amongst general dental practitioners

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to present the subjective knowledge level and the use of image processing on digital intraoral radiographs amongst general dental practitioners at Distriktstandvarden AB, Stockholm. Material and Methods: A questionnaire, consisting of 12 questions, was sent to 12 dental practices in Stockholm. Additionally, 200 radiographs were randomly selected from these clinics for evaluation of applied image processing and its effect on image quality. Descriptive and analytical statistical methods were applied to present the current status of the use of image processing alternatives for the dentists' daily clinical work. Results: 50 out of 53 dentists participated in the survey. The survey showed that most of dentists in this study had received education on image processing at some stage of their career. No correlations were found between application of image processing on one side and education received with regards to image processing, previous working experience, age and gender on the other. Image processing in terms of adjusting brightness and contrast was frequently used. Overall, in this study 24.5% of the 200 images were actually image processed in practice, in which 90% of the images were improved or maintained in image quality. Conclusions: According to our survey, image processing is experienced to be frequently used by the dentists at Distriktstandvarden AB for diagnosing anatomical and pathological changes using intraoral radiographs. 24.5% of the 200 images were actually image processed in terms of adjusting brightness and/or contrast. In the present study we did not found that the dentists' age, gender, previous working experience and education in image processing influence their viewpoint towards the application of image processing.