|
TEETH WERE BOUND TOGETHER WITH GOLD WIRE
At an ancient burial site, dental bridges are
excavated. Most probably inserted post-mortem.
 
APOLLONIA, the Patron Saint of Dentists was burned after
having her teeth knocked out. Depictions of her are usually
with forceps. |
THE EGYPTIANS
HESI-RE is the earliest dentist known by name.
Extraction was the first choice for dental trouble. The coarse diet
consumed by the Egyptians is the primary cause of dental disease,
resulting in abrasion of the occlusal surfaces of the teeth.
Historical texts show numerous references to toothache, pulpitis, erosion,
gingivitis.
ISLAMIC DENTISTRY
The Siwak, a primitive form of toothbrush, is used for
cleaning teeth, probably since prehistoric times. A horse shoe
shaped metal instrument is used to scrape the tongue as part of oral
hygiene care.
The key
is used by dentists in the American colonies to extract teeth. Some
keys are made by blacksmiths, who often served as the local dentist. 
|
THE MAYAS
Work on teeth was done not for dental maintenance or
hygiene, but strictly for ritual, religious or purely self adornment
purposes. Jade and turquoise stones are implanted in the
teeth. Filing teeth into different shapes to indicate tribal and
religious affiliations. Speculation that the Mayans were the first
to perform tooth transplantation.
|
THE GREEKS
HIPPOCRATES writes aboiut tooth decay and theorizes that
dental problems arise from a natural disposition or inherited weakness.
Ancient Greeks used pumice, talc, emery, ground alabaster, coral powder
and iron rust as dentifrice. Fingers were used as a toothbrush to
cleanse the teeth.
PARACELSUS, a Swiss, greatly expounds upon the
pharmacology of drugs available to dentistry. Quinine and
ipecacuanha are still in use today. Gutta-percha is also still in
use for root canal fillings.
|
THE ROMANS
The Etruscans become experts in restorative dentistry
using gold crowns and fixed bridgework. Full and partial dentures
are not uncommon. The Romans have high regard fro oral
hygiene. They use bones, eggshells, and oyster shells mixed with
honey to cleanse the teeth.
The
first dental anatomist, BARTO-LOMMENO EUSTACHIO, publishes"Pamphlet
On The Teeth" which covers anatomy and histology of the teeth.
 PIERRE
FAUCHARD, publishes "Treatise on the Teeth" and elevates
dentistry to new levels. He advocates that instead of patients
sitting on the floor, they sit on chairs. Several dental procedures
he develops are still in use today.
JOSIAH FLAGG, using the design of a Windsor chair,
constructs the first chair made specifically for dentists. It had an
adjustable and extended arms which held instruments. |
|
GEORGE WASHINGTON is elected President. At the time
of his election, he had only one tooth, a lower left bicuspid.
George Washington NEVER has wooden teeth. His dentures were
manufactured from gold, hippopotamus tusk, elephant ivory and human teeth.
R.C. SKINNER establishes the first in-hospital dental
clinic in the United States in New York. He is also responsible for
the first free dental care clinic for those who cannot afford the
fees. He also is a firm advocate of preventative dental
maintenance. Skinner is considered the father of American dental
literature.
WILLIAM MORTON uses ether, a first, and also invents the
ether inhaler, at Massaschuetts General Hospital. |
JOHN HUNTER, a British surgeon, names incisors, cuspids
and bicuspids. The silversmith, PAUL REVERE, using previously
constructed dental bridgework, identifies a dead body based on finding the
bridge in the mouth of the deceased. This is the first time dental
work is used to identify a person after death. |
NICOLAS DUBOIS DE CHEMANT patents porcelain teeth.
JAMES SNELL invents the first reclining dental chair.
|
SAMUEL S. WHITE, a Philadelphia jeweler, opens what would
become the largest dental manufacturing company in the world.
GARDNER COLTON demonstrates the effects of nitrous oxide. |
Pacifiers or teethers are made from coral and used to
expedite eruptions of the teeth in children. There is evidence they
were used earlier.
|
|
|
LUCY BEAMAN HOBBS, a graduate of the Ohio College of
Dental Surgery, becomes the first woman in the world to become a licensed
dentist |
New York is the first state which proposes examination of
dental candidates.
WILHELM ROENTGEN invents the X-ray. In 1901 he is
awarded the Nobel prize.
CREST® introduces the first tartar control toothpaste.
CREST® becomes the first toothpaste clinically proven to
prevent adult root cavities. |
The first electric dental drill was invented in 1868 by
GEORGE F. GREEN, a mechanic of the S.S. White Company. In 1872, the
S.S. White Company put the first electric drill on the market. The
motor was incorporated directly into the hand-piece. The majority of
dentists used the foot driven drill because most offices in the country
were not electrified. |
|
G.V. BLACK perfects the formulation for amalgam for dental
fillings: 68% silver with small amounts of copper, tin and
zinc. Expansion and contraction of fillings can now be controlled. |
C. DEMUND KELLS uses the first X-ray in dental practice. |
Dr. Alfred Fones of Connecticut trains his assistant Irene
Newman to do prophylactic work on children. She becomes the first
dental hygienist in the world. The DMF Index is proposed as a
quantitative means of measuring decay, missing and filled teeth by Dr.
Trendley Dean. Dean studies extensively on fluoride and its impact
of teeth. The American Society for the promotion of Children's
Dentistry is founded. |
 
CREST® is awarded ADA acceptance as an effective decay
preventive agent, the first toothpaste to achieve this recognition. |
|
CREST® is chosen as the toothpaste for all NASA Shuttle
flights.
|
