Dental Radiography Consulting Services

In order to better serve the veterinary community, Dr. Lemmons offers professional assessment of veterinary dental radiographs.  For each case a detailed description of the radiographic findings, an assessment based on the provided history and radiographs, and treatment options or additional recommended diagnostics are provided.  If digital radiographs or digitized film (a digital photograph of analog film) is provided, a copy will be returned with detailed annotation.  Additionally, if any technical comments are necessary, they will be provided.  All electronically submitted cases will be assessed and returned within 24 hours of receipt if sent before 3pm on Friday.  If sent after 3pm on Friday, an assessment will be returned by 9 am on the following Tuesday.  If a case is sent via “snail mail”, we will notify the practice when it arrives.  The films will be scanned digitally, assessed and returned electronically within 24 hours of receipt if an email address is provided.  The written assessment will be mailed that day via U.S. mail.

The cost of this service is $40 for each submitted case.

If requested, an estimate of costs for further treatment will be provided along with the consultation.

What is the value of this service or dental radiography for that matter?

Intra-oral or dental radiographs provide essential information in diagnosis, treatment planning and continued assessment of dental and oral disease.  This valuable diagnostic provides more detailed information than standard skull radiographs.  Without radiography, it is not possible to fully assess resorptive lesions, bone loss due to periodontal disease, if missing teeth are impacted, presence of retained root tips, and bone destruction due to neoplasia or oral trauma.  Proper assessment of dental radiographs not only provides a better service to patients and clients but also generates more income for the hospital.
The principles of dental radiography are not dissimilar to general radiography; however there are differences in positioning and anatomy, which are significant.  If the diagnosis is clear, the treatment options may not be completely obvious and subtle changes may preclude some options.  Because of this, we offer this valuable service to our colleagues.

How to submit dental radiographs for consultation:

• Please complete the electronic referral form linked at the bottom of this page.
• Submit all of the dental radiographs for this patient.  There is no limit on the number of radiographs submitted for each case. If radiographs from an earlier date are available, please submit them as well.
• A contra-lateral radiograph is often very useful.  For example, if the right maxillary fourth premolar is to be addressed, please include a radiograph of the left maxillary fourth premolar for comparison.
• Digital radiographs can attached with the electronic form as a .jpeg.
• If you have taken digital photos, please include them as a .jpeg.  They are not necessary but may provide essential information.
• Standard film can either be mailed or emailed as a digital photograph (see below).
• Payment can either be sent with the film, or we can send a monthly invoice to the hospital.

Hints for submitting a digital photograph of an analog film:

• Each radiograph should be photographed individually.
• Place the radiograph on a lightbox with the lightbox masked so only the radiograph is backlit.  Cutting an aperture the size of dental film in an opaque material such as cardboard or a completely exposed large radiograph film can act as the mask.
• Turn the flash off.
• Set the camera to black and white.
• Fill the camera viewfinder with the image. This may require the camera be set to the macros or "flower" mode for focus.
• Movement will decrease film quality. A tripod may help.
• Download the images to you computer for electronic transfer.