Dental Diagnostics in Dubai

Every piece of dental imaging the clinic needs is done on site: intraoral radiographs of individual teeth, panoramic images of both jaws, lateral cephalometric images for orthodontic analysis, and cone beam computed tomography where a question requires three dimensions.

That is not a convenience point. It means a diagnosis is completed in the appointment where the question arose rather than a week later, that a surgical plan is not held up by an external imaging centre, and that the clinician who will carry out the treatment decides what needs imaging and how — instead of reading someone else's interpretation of a scan taken to someone else's protocol.

Two pages carry the detail: CBCT and dental X-ray for imaging itself, and dental CT scan reporting for reading volumes, including those acquired elsewhere.

The unit installed at ELEMENTAL is a Planmeca Viso G5. It is a three-in-one machine: cone beam computed tomography, panoramic radiography and cephalometric imaging on the same chair, so a patient who needs both a 3D volume and a lateral ceph for orthodontic planning is positioned once rather than sent between rooms.

Three features change what the operator can do. The field of view is not fixed to preset cylinders — it is drawn on live low-dose preview images, so the volume can be limited to the two teeth in question instead of the whole jaw. Voxel size goes down to 75 micrometres in the endodontic mode, which is the resolution range where an accessory canal or a vertical root fracture line becomes readable. And the scan protocol is adjustable: Ultra Low Dose acquisition is available where the diagnostic question tolerates it, with movement-correction and artefact-reduction algorithms applied during reconstruction.

The same unit captures a ProFace 3D facial photograph, which is used in orthognathic and orthodontic discussions to show the patient how skeletal position and soft-tissue profile relate. Panoramic and cephalometric images come off the same sensor, so a full orthodontic record set is one appointment.

A dental CBCT is ordered when a two-dimensional film cannot answer the clinical question. In practice that is five situations.

Implant planning. Bone height above the inferior alveolar nerve, bone width in cross-section, the floor of the maxillary sinus and bone density are all measured on the volume before an implant is chosen. The scan is what makes a guided protocol possible — see dental implants and bone grafting and sinus lift.

Wisdom teeth. When a panoramic image shows the roots of a lower third molar crossing the nerve canal, CBCT resolves whether they truly contact it. That changes the surgical plan and the consent conversation — see tooth extraction.

Endodontics. Missed canals, calcified canals, resorption and persistent apical lesions after a previous root filling are the usual indications. A limited high-resolution volume is used here rather than a full-jaw scan — see root canal treatment.

Orthodontics. Impacted canines, their relationship to the roots of neighbouring incisors, airway assessment and skeletal analysis — see braces and clear aligners.

Pathology and trauma. Cysts, odontogenic lesions, jaw fractures and temporomandibular joint anatomy.

Every dental X-ray uses ionising radiation, and the rule we work to is justification: a scan is taken because a specific clinical decision depends on it, not because it is available. A CBCT is not part of a routine check-up, and we do not re-scan a patient who arrives with a recent volume from another clinic if that volume answers the question.

Once justified, the dose is kept as low as the diagnostic task allows. That is done by limiting the field of view to the region of interest, by selecting the lowest resolution that still shows what needs to be seen, and by using the Ultra Low Dose protocol where it is appropriate. A small-volume dental CBCT delivers a fraction of the dose of a medical CT of the same region, and the difference between a targeted volume and a full-jaw volume is substantial.

Lead protection is used, the room is DHA-registered for dental radiography and the equipment is under a service and quality-assurance schedule. If you are pregnant or think you may be, tell the team before the appointment — in most cases imaging is deferred, and where an urgent diagnosis genuinely depends on it the decision is made with the treating doctor and additional shielding. Children are imaged only on a specific indication and with a paediatric protocol.

You do not need a referral to book dental imaging here. Patients come to us three ways: as part of their own treatment at ELEMENTAL, on referral from an outside dentist who wants a volume for a case they are planning, and as a second-opinion read of a study taken elsewhere.

What you leave with: the raw study as DICOM files on a drive or via a download link, viewer software, and a written radiological report where one is requested. DICOM matters because it is the format that implant-planning and orthodontic software actually reads — a screenshot or a printed image is not a substitute if your surgeon plans to design a surgical guide from the volume. Reports are issued by the reporting radiologist, and a same-day report can be arranged for urgent surgical cases.

Cost is confirmed in writing before the scan is taken, and it depends on the field of view, the resolution required and whether a written report is included. Imaging performed as part of a treatment plan agreed at your consultation is quoted inside that plan, so nothing is added on the day. A dental consultation at ELEMENTAL is AED 850 and includes the examination and a written treatment plan. Prices current as of October 2026. See CBCT and dental X-ray and tomography reporting for the individual services.