Does your kid hate the dentist? This new AI tool could help
New scanning technology can build a 3D model of their teeth in just a few minutes, allowing care for kids who usually refuse dental exams.
Cutting-edge technology powered by AI can accurately spot the early signs of tooth decay in children, new Melbourne research shows, paving the way for easier dental care.
The device, a small handheld scanner that can quickly build an accurate 3D model of a child’s teeth, is expected to particularly help kids who fight dental check-ups or live rurally.
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Professor Mihiri Silva said the exam takes just a few minutes and the device takes thousands of photos as the dentist rolls it over the child’s teeth
“It’s got a little camera at the end,” she said.
“It then stitches [the photos] together into a three dimensional model … that you can flip around and you can have a look at on a larger screen.”
The MCRI and Melbourne University study, published JMIR Public Health and Surveillance, compared traditional dental exams with the technology.
It found the intraoral scanner was just as accurate at detecting tooth decay, which is a crucial step to allow its use for this purpose.
MCRI Research Dr Bree Jones said it could help kids avoid fillings.
“The 3D AI technology could provide more comprehensive dental assessments for children who are only able to tolerate brief or limited time at the dentist, helping to avoid fillings,” she said.
Prof Silva said, while further research was needed to embed it in standard care, the technology was also a great communication tool and, for nervous children, distraction.
“We certainly found that parents and the children really loved seeing the three-dimensional image form as the scan was happening,” she said.
“It’s a really great communication tool, even with kids, in terms of saying ‘okay, you can see there’s a little spot of decay, we can stop this getting worse if we can try some things and then we’ll keep tracking it.”
She said the models can be viewed remotely, allowing dentists to easily get a second or specialist opinion, which could be particularly valuable for children in more rural and remote areas.
“Having a scanner can bring a lot of services to people who might not have that access,” she said.
She said the ability to refer back to previous scans would also help monitor changes over time, which is crucial to managing tooth decay.
“If you can pick up tooth decay early, if you can track how it changes, you can really throw all the great things that we have to prevent and stop decay getting worse,” she said.
“Visual examinations are the gold standard in dental but we need to find new ways to better detect tooth decay as soon as early signs of decay occur.
“Baby teeth … are a key predictor of future health outcomes.”
Their study, in line with previous figures, found 38 per cent of the five-year-old children involved in their research had signs of dental decay.
Melbourne Dad Jonathan Teoh said his son Spencer, 5, loved anything gadget-related, so technology like this would like help make a dentist visit a more positive experience.
“The fact it’s an interactive thing and you can see what’s happening in his mouth, it’s almost like a reward at the end,” he said.
“It’s been really important for us to build positive experiences so that when they go to a healthcare setting … it would be something that he can manage and cope with.”
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Originally published as Does your kid hate the dentist? This new AI tool could help
