HEALTH : Picturing the Problem : Video technology helps dentists and patients close in on dental trouble spots.

Francine Brandt had just been told that an old filling in a back molar needed to be replaced by a crown. At first, the procedure sounded to her like something she could put off. But when her Sherman Oaks dentist, Craig Hirasawa, showed her the tooth on a 13-inch color video screen, she could tell the work had to be done.

“The video picture gives you a much better idea of the scale and the need,” said Brandt, 44, of Sherman Oaks. “I could see the crannies in my tooth and how it would most likely fall apart if not treated.”

Some dentists are beginning to use penlight-size video cameras to produce color pictures of teeth and gums. The systems, which use video chip technology and fiber-optic illumination, are designed not just to help dentists better detect and analyze problems but also to help convince patients that recommended work is needed, Hirasawa said.

Brandt initially saw her tooth close-up on the chair-side video monitor, then was given a color still to take home. “For the first time, I could see my mouth from the dentist’s perspective,” she said.

Hirasawa said his $8,500 investment in the AcuCam system, manufactured by New Image Industries Inc. in Canoga Park, was worthwhile because it increases the chance his patients will accept the treatment he suggests. “Today, patients get ultrasound when they’re pregnant, and it adds meaning,” Hirasawa said. “The video camera takes the mystery out of dentistry.”

The camera also magnifies the tooth and gums with a 28-power lens, helping the dentist pick up small cracks and subtle problems that could be missed without the tool, Hirasawa said. Because many patients come to the dentist without pain or self-identified problems, the pictures often help them understand the potential trauma or trouble they could experience if they delay preventive work, he said. But the major benefit is that a picture can do what words cannot.

Hirasawa also finds that the video is helpful in convincing insurance companies that dental work is needed, and it can also be valuable in documenting diagnosis and treatment in case of litigation.

Sam Bensussen, 73, of Sherman Oaks was amazed when he first saw his mouth on the television screen after a routine cleaning. “I’ve never seen my teeth the way I did with the fiber optics,” he said. “It tears down the fear barrier to see your teeth in another light, and it gave me a new dimension of what he sees.”

Mike Perlin, area manager for New Image Industries, said that only 20% of dentists use video technology, probably because of its cost. The device is non-invasive, so is not evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration, but is approved by Underwriters Laboratories.

Brandt acknowledges a downside to seeing her own teeth magnified on a screen. “It’s not for the faint of heart,” she said.