Dentists are always worried about missing something—especially in the midst of packed schedules, emergency patients, and appointments running over. Sometimes, there’s simply not enough time to examine an x-ray thoroughly.
“We all want to make sure the little cavity we saw at the last visit doesn’t become a root canal in the 6 months that the patient went home,” said Dr. Bob Dokhanchi, founder of the online community Dentistry in General and a private practice clinician for over 30 years. A technology enthusiast, he loves adding new digital tools to his Aurora, IL, practice, including Dentrix Ascend Detect AI. Powered and manufactured by VideaHealth, it automatically annotates X-ray scans with AI-enabled caries detection.
“My patients know how passionate I am about technology, so I’ll hear them say, ‘Oh, here comes another toy for Dr. Bob!’” he joked. “But they know that I don’t bring anything into the practice unless it will benefit them. Dentrix Ascend Detect AI helps me be so much more efficient. It helps me correct something that I may have missed, or brings my attention to something that might not have been on my radar.”
Building Trust Through Technology
Fully integrated into the Dentrix and Dentrix Ascend imaging workflows, Detect AI is a powerful tool that helps clinicians make early, accurate diagnoses and supports them in creating more effective treatment plans and building trust with their patients.
“No matter how much we’d like to believe our patients have trust in us, this technology provides a second trust factor that confirms your opinion,” said Dr. Dokhanchi. “It’s not just me telling them to look at a certain area, the tool is highlighting it as well. This is especially important for younger dentists who are establishing themselves as a new provider in the area and need to gain trust to grow their patient base.”
A Vehicle That Drives Better Dentistry
Dr. Dokhanchi added that while AI-enabled caries detection is a powerful tool for patient education, clinicians are still in the driver’s seat. “AI is not here to diagnose; it’s simply a tool to help you be a better clinician,” he said. “I love the fact that when I walk into the exam room, my hygienist has Dentrix Ascend Detect AI up on the screen and I can see if I agree with the findings or if I’m going to monitor the area.”
Ultimately, Dr. Dokhanchi feels that Dentrix Ascend Detect AI can help dentists with the 2 most important aspects of the job: not missing any lesions and communicating with their patients.
“I talk to a lot of younger dentists about this technology and tell them that instead of treating it as a moneymaker, to look at it as something that they can use to become better,” he concluded. “If you don’t miss a lesion, you are a better dentist, and that eventually will lead to a better practice.”
