Technology has significantly changed the way we live, on a global scale. Industries across the world are developing new, innovative, technology solutions that are ultimately improving our quality of life. The healthcare and dental industry, specifically, have been introduced to technology with such advancements, that they’re hard to imagine. Tech innovations such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), or machine learning, have made an impact on the healthcare world by assisting medical practitioners in detecting and treating diseases. AI is essentially a machine simulation of human intelligence; they are typically designed for processes such as problem-solving, learning, speech recognition, and planning.
The dental industry is beginning to experience a significant impact from technology and AI. In the near future, the progression of dentistry AI may assist dentists in treating patients without the risk of misdiagnosing or failing to diagnose the issues entirely. Rather than waste time visiting the dentist multiple times to diagnose, treat, and conceal things such as, cavities, AI may very well limit the number of visits and the amount of time needed to effectively and efficiently finish the job.
Something as simple as a cavity has inspired numerous AI companies to develop different machine learning technologies that can improve a dentists ability to diagnose and treat different dental issues. In this recent article, dental AI developers, Angam Parashar and Ankit Singh explain how a simple dental error inspired their passion for AI in dentistry. By feeding their AI thousands of images of dental scans and a vast amount of information, they enable it to calculate algorithms to apply when conducting scans of its own; of course, what distinguishes AI from a computer program is that the AI has the capacity to learn, so adapting to new information and making note of irregularities is an important feature that allows for improvement.
Implementing this technology could enable an individual to scan their own teeth with their toothbrush that, using AI, could detect cavities or other causes of irritation without a trip to the dentist. Doing so will lessen the amount of time spent on scheduling appointments, answering questions, and undergoing inspections. Instead, the dentist will know, thanks to the AI’s detailed scans, where a cavity is located and how severe it is before the patient even arrives at the office.
If AI continues to develop at the same rapid rate, dentistry will be made more efficient, thorough, and accessible to all.
SurfCT.com is an innovative dental technology company founded by Paul Vigario. While AI in dentistry is continuing to grow, companies like SurfCT.com are developing and implementing new technologies that use AI to efficiently improve numerous dental processes. At SurfCT.com, we believe Everything Is Connected™ and AI technology will change dentistry forever.