View Add/Edit Patient Images screen. View Video, 1 min. 43 sec.

NEA Image Type and NEA Orientation
Notice there are two drop down list boxes on the Add/Edit Patient Images screen entitled NEA Image Type and NEA Orientation. These are required fields if you are transmitting images to insurance carriers using National Electronic Attachment’s (NEA) FastAttach software. As discussed earlier, when you click the Scanner button the Acquire TWAIN Scanner screen will appear first. You will select General or X-Ray. If you select X-Ray the NEA Image Type field will default to “X-RAY” and the NEA Orientation will default to “Bubble Toward Viewer.” In all other situations the NEA Image Type field will default to “OTHER” and the NEA Orientation will default to “Not Applicable.” Once the image is imported into Diamond Dental Software you may change these default settings if you wish. The complete choice set for these fields are:

Acquiring X-Ray Images From Scanners
X-rays are transparencies and cannot be scanned with reflected light in the way you would scan a photograph or document. X-rays must be scanned with the light shined through them. You must use a scanner with a “Transparency Unit.” In scanners the CCD array is analogous to the film in a film camera. In reflective scans a light unit is enclosed inside the scanner with the CCD array. The opaque target item has light shined onto it and that light is reflected back to the CCD array and the exposure is made. For transparencies the “transparent” target item (like a radiograph) is placed between the light source and the CCD array. Light is shined through the target item and collected by the CCD array which makes the exposure.

Suggested Scanners
Many low-cost scanners have a transparency unit included. These are designed to illuminate 35mm film strips or slides and the transparency unit itself is quite small. For example, the HP Scanjet 3970 which is priced at about $100 has an integrated transparency unit in its lid. It only measure about 1.5 inches by 3 inches. This is just big enough for a few 35mm slides. For dental purposes you could scan 1 or 2 intraoral films at a time. If that is all you want to do then many low-cost scanners are available that could meet your needs. If you are serious about digitizing your X-rays you will need a scanner with a “large” transparency unit. Surprisingly, there are not very many to choose from. What we consider to be a “large” transparency unit would be at least 8 x 10 inches. With a 10 inch width you have enough room to lay a full mouth set of  X-rays on the glass in a standard arrangement. The digitized full mouth radiographs seen here were placed on an 8 x 10 inch transparency scanner. Note that the arrangement is in a familiar standard format but the 8 x 10 inch scanners do not have enough room to include a mounted full mouth set. 8 x 10 inches is also large enough for panorex radiographs however you do need to trim a little off the pan in order for it to fit the 10 inch width. That is OK since nothing of significance is at the edges of  panorex.