Bitewing is the word for a small X-ray of your back teeth biting together.

In kid words

A bitewing is a tiny picture of your teeth, and you help us take it by biting down gently on a little tab. It only takes a second, kind of like holding a small square between your teeth. The picture shows us your back teeth, the ones your toothbrush has the hardest time reaching.

The parent version

A bitewing X-ray is a common type of dental X-ray that captures the upper and lower back teeth biting together, giving your child's dentist a view of the areas between teeth that are not visible during a regular look in the mouth. It is most useful for catching early decay between teeth before it grows into a bigger problem.

Whether your child needs one, and how often, depends on their own mouth and history. Ask your pediatric dentist how X-rays fit into your child's care.

Where you might hear it at our office

You might hear us mention a bitewing during a routine checkup, when we are looking for early signs of a cavity hiding between two teeth. We take digital X-rays at both offices, and only when they are needed, never as an automatic step tacked onto every visit.

A bitewing is one small part of preventative care, alongside the checkup and cleaning itself. You can look up other unfamiliar words in the rest of the dental dictionary.

Related words

X-ray. Caries. Decay.