Edna Ferrer: A Case Study

Today I had the opportunity to work on my patient, Edna Ferrer. I met her today, and I am glad she is taking the time to come to the clinic for treatment. The good thing about her is that she had periodontal treatment before, and she knows her gums are not healthy now. She has lost a lot of bone structure, and in order to preserve what she has, my biggest challenge will be to make her understand how her smoking habit is contributing to the development of her periodontitis. Also, she needs to modify her bushing, and flossing technique; and add some adjuncts such as interproximal tooth brush, and a mouth rinse with chlorhexidine. Although, she is not ready to quit smoking, she was willing to decrease the numbers of cigarettes she smokes
While taking the FMX on my patient Edna, I had some difficulties because she is missing most of the posterior teeth and the sensor was not staying in place, and I had to use cotton roll to help her bite down. Also, I had problems with the setting of the x-ray machine. When I used Dexter for practicing in the dental radiology lab, I had to change the setting by selecting the tooth that was going to be exposed. With my patient when I did this, the kVp increased too much, and some of the radiograph came out too dark. This was an eye opening experience, and I know that from now on I have to be aware of the numbers of the setting when I