Dental Applications

Nxpeds Aren't Playing Games in the Dental Office

Nxpeds foot switches have filled a unique niche in my dental office. With the problems associated with sterilizing and handling equipment, these foot switches have allowed many computer functions to be performed without using hands. I knew the durability of these devices had to be good, because computer gamers use them for hours on end, and at a fiercer rate than would ever be used in dentistry.

Currently, I use these switches to control video frame capture from an intra-oral camera. Previously, I had to have an assistant either do a keystroke entry or icon click to capture a frame. The Nxpeds center pedal has been dedicated to that function. The frame grabbing software, (which came with the ATI All-In-Wonder video card that is used), calls for a Control-Insert keystroke to frame capture. That's exactly what the center pedal has been programmed to send. Actually, the ATI All-In-Wonder capture software flips between two programs when a frame is captured. It flips from a live video screen to the ATI Stills program that holds a bunch of already captured frames. To get back to the video capture program in Windows, you do an Alternate-Tab on the keyboard to jump to the previous window. (Try it on your own keyboard). To accomplish all of this with one click of the foot pedal, I programmed the center pedal to do a Control-Insert, followed by a 1 second pause to allow the picture to be saved to disk, followed by an Alternate-Tab to jump back to live video. Sounds complicated, but it was easy to program into the switch, and it works flawlessly.

Most of the time, I have several programs running at once on the computer  monitor in the dental operatory: today's schedule, a patient dental chart, and a patient education program. The right pedal of the Nxped is programmed to do only an Alternate-Tab. This allows a simple pedal push to flip between the running programs without touching a hand to anything. The dental software that I currently use is Dentrix ( http://www.dentrix.com, a Henry Schein, Inc. company). When the patient's chart is on screen, an Alternate-F F is used to bring up the Family File (which shows personal data, dental insurance, etc.). Again, I have programmed the left pedal to perform this key sequence. Currently, I only have one Nxped in each operatory. Potentially, it may be useful to have one for the doctor and one for the assistant, as each may have their own keystroke needs.

I have experimented with many input devices for the dental operatory and have found four to be useful: (1) the keyboard and (2) mouse continue to be useful with the ungloved hand when doing initial exams and treatment notes, (3) the Cirque ( http://www.cirque.com) touchpad (same as a laptop touchpad device) for occasional mouse pointing and clicking and (4) the Nxpeds footswitch ( http://www.nxpeds.com) for video capture and program flipping. These devices have together made the operation of the computer in the dental operatory fluid, unencumbered and easy. With the advent of USB ports on all current computers, all of the above input devices can be hooked up with ease.

If anyone has any questions regarding the use or setup of these devices in the dental office, feel free to contact me at .

Richard A. Rolfsmeier, DDS
Seward, Nebraska