Radiographical Errors in Dental Students Work

Batool S. Abbas, Areej A. Najm, Jwan A.Mohammed, Maryam A. Abdul Kareem, Mina A. Abdulkareem

Abstract: Background: Radiography is useful in the diagnosis and treatment planning of various oro-facial pathologies. Changes in the quality of radiographs may lead to misinterpretation, resulting in incorrect diagnosis and treatment planning, Aim of the study: To evaluate the prevalence of radiographical errors in intraoral films taken by undergraduate dental students. Material and method: 950 dental radiographs taken by undergraduate students were retrieved from archives and examined. Patient's age ranged between (5 ? 68) years. Female patients were 473 and males were 477. X ray films were examined on x-ray film viewer and classified according to type of film, type of errors and area examined. Results and discussion: Higher percentage of errors were found in males than females, higher in peri-apical than bitewing and occlusal films, higher percentage of errors were found in posterior area than anterior area, and the most common error is conecut. Conclusion: The dental radiographer must be able to recognize and identify the causes of exposure and technique errors, and must know what steps are necessary to correct such errors, we can reduce these errors by increasing the training course for students and by using film holder.

Keywords: radiographical errors, dental students