Why I Use: x-Guide
Dynamic 3D navigation system delivers interactive, turn-by-turn guidance and a live 360° view of drill position and anatomy during implant placement
I always tell dentists who are starting to place implants that we work upside down and backwards in a wet cave as the oral environment. And sometimes, our eyes lie to us. We think we're going into one place, and then we realize after taking a final x-ray that we weren't where we needed to be. For me, X-Nav Technologies' X-Guide system provides an added layer of security and safety in a traditional freehand workflow. It is basically a tool that says, "Hey, here's where you need to be.”
An Investment in Accuracy
When I got out of the military and opened up my private practice, my first two investments were a cone beam imaging unit and the X-Guide system—that’s how critical I felt it was to my daily work. Since then, I’ve used it on virtually every implant case, from single implants to immediate full-arch cases, and it’s been a game changer for consistency and precision during dental implant placement.
The workflow is simple—take a 3D cone beam scan with or without a digital impression, and then upload that data into the X-Guide platform where you can plan for the restoration and the prosthetic-driven implant placement. Then, an X-Point Target on the screen guides your movements and allows you to deliver the implant with better accuracy and, more importantly, consistency. You can avoid many of the prosthetic errors that occur during freehand placement.
The benefits of the X-Guide system compared to other guided platforms is that your surgical intuition is still there and you’re using the same skill set you would if you were placing the implant freehand—but with an added tool that tells you exactly where to place it.
The Patient Perspective
I think many of my patients take comfort in the fact that they can see exactly where the implant is going and that the X-Guide system allows us to treat them safely while striving for the best result. Referrals often tell me that if a case needs to be done right, they know to send it to me because the implant will be in a perfect position every time. The cost of failure, particularly when it comes to dental implants, is astronomical not only for the dentist, but also for the patient. X-Guide is really the best of both worlds—it allows us as clinicians to maintain our surgical intuition while having a tool that confirms we're delivering the implant in the right place, and doing it safely and consistently.
I’ve had to freehand a couple of implants on the fly for various reasons and it’s been fine, but it’s like driving without a seatbelt. I just don’t feel comfortable anymore. So, this system has definitely been ingrained into how I practice. It’s an amazing piece of technology and I look forward to seeing how
