Yes. A cone beam scan uses X-rays, so there's a small amount of radiation, but the dose is low. It's higher than an everyday dental X-ray but far lower than a hospital CT scan, and for a typical implant scan it's broadly comparable to the natural background radiation we're all exposed to over a few days to a few weeks. We only ever take a scan when it will genuinely help plan or check your treatment, and we keep the dose as low as possible. For implant surgery, the detail it gives is what makes the treatment safer, which is the whole reason for taking it.

They produce similar quality 3D images, but a cone beam scan is built specifically for teeth and jaws, so it focuses on a small area and uses far less radiation than a full medical CT. It's also quicker and more comfortable. The machine is open, so there's none of the enclosed-tunnel feeling people associate with a hospital scanner, and there's no injection or dye involved

An ordinary X-ray is flat, so it can't show everything we need to place an implant safely. A 3D scan lets us measure the exact height, width and quality of your bone, and see the position of important structures like the nerve in your lower jaw and the sinuses in your upper jaw. That means we can plan precisely where each implant should go, work safely around those structures, and often carry out guided surgery for a more accurate result. In short, it makes your treatment both safer and more predictable.

For the vast majority of people, a cone beam scan is a safe and simple part of implant planning. The main thing to mention is pregnancy: if you're pregnant or think you might be, let us know, and we'll decide together whether to go ahead now or wait, since we avoid any non-essential imaging during pregnancy. Otherwise there's very little to think about. We always check that a scan is genuinely needed before taking one, so it's never done routinely without good reason.