The Excruciating History of Dentistry

Author: James Wynbrandt
Publisher: Macmillan + ORM
ISBN: 1466890142
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 330

Book Description
An “entertaining history” of the practice of dentistry that will remind you how lucky you are to live in the modern era (Publishers Weekly). For those on both sides of the dreaded dentist’s chair, James Wynbrandt has written a witty, colorful, and richly informative history of the art and science of dentistry. To all of those dental patients whose whine rises in tandem with that of the drill, take note: You would do well to stifle your terror and instead offer thanks to Apollonia, the patron saint of toothache sufferers, that you face only fleeting discomfort rather than the disfiguring distress or slow agonizing death oft meted out by dental-care providers of the past. The transition from yesterday’s ignorance, misapprehension, and superstition to the enlightened and nerve-deadened protocols of today has been a long, slow, and very painful process—as shown by such facts as: *Among the toothache remedies favored by Pierre Fauchard, the father of dentistry, was rinsing the mouth liberally with one’s own urine. *George Washington never had wooden teeth. However, his chronic dental problems may have impacted the outcome of the American Revolution. *Soldiers in the Civil War needed at least two opposing front teeth to rip open powder envelopes. Some men had their front teeth extracted to avoid service. *Teeth were harvested from as many as fifty thousand corpses after the Battle of Waterloo, a huge crop later used for dentures and transplants that became known as “Waterloo Teeth.” “You’ll gain a great deal of dental knowledge, acquired quite painlessly.” —The New York Times Book Review “Just the thing you need to get through your next oral probing.” —Entertainment Weekly “A breezy romp . . . While sensitive dentists may wince at having their profession’s rough-and-tumble past revealed, dental patients are more likely to feel relief at having been born in the modern era of dentistry. Both groups are in for a good laugh.” —Kirkus Reviews

The Excruciating History of Dentistry

Author: James Wynbrandt
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 0312185766
Category : Dentistry
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
This history includes George Washington who never had wooden teeth, harvesting teeth from corpses after the Battle of Waterloo, Paul Revere and the field of forensic odontology, the patron saint of toothache sufferers, and perception of pain as reported by dentists and their patients.

A History of Dentistry in the US Army to World War II

Author: John M. Hyson
Publisher: Government Printing Office
ISBN: 9780160821592
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 900

Book Description
A detailed history of the development of military dentistry in the United States, from beginnings in the early 17th century, through the professionalization of dentistry in the 19th century, dental care on both sides of the Civil War, the establishment of the US Army Dental Corps in 1909, and the expansion of the Corps through World War I and afterward, to the verge of the Second World War.

Dentistry

Author: Malvin E. Ring
Publisher: Abradale Press
ISBN: 9780810981164
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 319

Book Description
Five centuries of fear and loathing, pain and relief, make for fascinating, enlightening reading in a profusely illustrated, international history of dental theory and practice.

Smile Stealers: The Fine and Foul Art of Dentistry

Author: Richard Barnett
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
ISBN: 0500773866
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Book Description
An incisive and startling international review of the evolution of dentistry from the Bronze Age to the present day, presented in a gorgeous package This achingly fascinating book follows the evolution of dentistry throughout the world from the Bronze Age to the present day, featuring captivating, grim illustrations of the tools and techniques of dentistry through the ages. It charts the changing social attitudes toward the purpose and practice of dentistry from the crude and painful endeavors of early civilizations to the fluoridated water, cosmetic surgery, and heightened expectations of today. Organized chronologically, The Smile Stealers interleaves beautiful and gruesome 3D objects, technical illustrations, and paintings from the Wellcome Collection’s unique medical archive of material from Europe, America, and the Far East with seven authoritative and eloquent themed articles from medical historian Richard Barnett. Including previously unseen illustrations, this comprehensive review of the development of the trade and discipline of dentistry covers topics as diverse as the very first dentures, the smile revolution in eighteenth-century portraiture, and the role of dentistry in forensic science. The Smile Stealers is guaranteed to appeal to those who see the beauty in medicine and biology as it probes the growth of dentistry.

Teeth

Author: Mary Otto
Publisher: The New Press
ISBN: 1620972816
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 235

Book Description
An NPR Best Book of 2017 "[Teeth is] . . . more than an exploration of a two-tiered system—it is a call for sweeping, radical change." —New York Times Book Review "Show me your teeth," the great naturalist Georges Cuvier is credited with saying, "and I will tell you who you are." In this shattering new work, veteran health journalist Mary Otto looks inside America's mouth, revealing unsettling truths about our unequal society. Teeth takes readers on a disturbing journey into America's silent epidemic of oral disease, exposing the hidden connections between tooth decay and stunted job prospects, low educational achievement, social mobility, and the troubling state of our public health. Otto's subjects include the pioneering dentist who made Shirley Temple and Judy Garland's teeth sparkle on the silver screen and helped create the all-American image of "pearly whites"; Deamonte Driver, the young Maryland boy whose tragic death from an abscessed tooth sparked congressional hearings; and a marketing guru who offers advice to dentists on how to push new and expensive treatments and how to keep Medicaid patients at bay. In one of its most disturbing findings, Teeth reveals that toothaches are not an occasional inconvenience, but rather a chronic reality for millions of people, including disproportionate numbers of the elderly and people of color. Many people, Otto reveals, resort to prayer to counteract the uniquely devastating effects of dental pain. Otto also goes back in time to understand the roots of our predicament in the history of dentistry, showing how it became separated from mainstream medicine, despite a century of growing evidence that oral health and general bodily health are closely related. Muckraking and paradigm-shifting, Teeth exposes for the first time the extent and meaning of our oral health crisis. It joins the small shelf of books that change the way we view society and ourselves—and will spark an urgent conversation about why our teeth matter.

The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth

Author: Thomas Morris
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1524743704
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 370

Book Description
"Delightfully horrifying."--Popular Science This wryly humorous collection of stories about bizarre medical treatments and cases offers a unique portrait of a bygone era in all its jaw-dropping weirdness. A puzzling series of dental explosions beginning in the nineteenth century is just one of many strange tales that have long lain undiscovered in the pages of old medical journals. Award-winning medical historian Thomas Morris delivers one of the most remarkable, cringe-inducing collections of stories ever assembled. Witness Mysterious Illnesses (such as the Rhode Island woman who peed through her nose), Horrifying Operations (1781: A French soldier in India operates on his own bladder stone), Tall Tales (like the "amphibious infant" of Chicago, a baby that could apparently swim underwater for half an hour), Unfortunate Predicaments (such as that of the boy who honked like a goose after inhaling a bird's larynx), and a plethora of other marvels. Beyond a series of anecdotes, these painfully amusing stories reveal a great deal about the evolution of modern medicine. Some show the medical profession hopeless in the face of ailments that today would be quickly banished by modern drugs; but others are heartening tales of recovery against the odds, patients saved from death by the devotion or ingenuity of a conscientious doctor. However embarrassing the ailment or ludicrous the treatment, every case in The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth tells us something about the knowledge (and ignorance) of an earlier age, along with the sheer resilience of human life.

The Tales Teeth Tell

Author: Tanya M. Smith
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262348934
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 297

Book Description
What human teeth can tell us about our evolution, development, and behavior . . . This fascinating, accessible study will “put a smile on your face with its weird facts about primate dentistry and the shrinking grins of modern-day humans” (Washington Post). Our teeth have intriguing stories to tell. These sophisticated time machines record growth, diet, and evolutionary history as clearly as tree rings map a redwood's lifespan. Each day of childhood is etched into tooth crowns and roots—capturing birth, nursing history, environmental clues, and illnesses. The study of ancient, fossilized teeth sheds light on how our ancestors grew up, how we evolved, and how prehistoric cultural transitions continue to affect humans today. In The Tales Teeth Tell, biological anthropologist Tanya Smith offers an engaging and surprising look at what teeth tell us about the evolution of primates—including our own uniqueness. Humans’ impressive set of varied teeth provides a multipurpose toolkit honed by the diet choices of our mammalian ancestors. Fossil teeth, highly resilient because of their substantial mineral content, are all that is left of some long-extinct species. Smith explains how researchers employ painstaking techniques to coax microscopic secrets from these enigmatic remains. Counting tiny daily lines provides a way to estimate age that is more powerful than any other forensic technique. Dental plaque—so carefully removed by dental hygienists today—records our ancestors' behavior and health in the form of fossilized food particles and bacteria, including their DNA. Smith also traces the grisly origins of dentistry, reveals that the urge to pick one’s teeth is not unique to humans, and illuminates the age-old pursuit of “dental art.” The book is generously illustrated with original photographs, many in color.

British Teeth

Author: William Leith
Publisher: Short Publications
ISBN: 9780571208654
Category : British
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
In The Ring of Confidence, William Leith casts his mind back over his personal history - his education, his diet and particularly his dentistry - and considers what it is to be British.

Evolution's Bite

Author: Peter S. Ungar
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691182833
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 248

Book Description
Whether we realize it or not, we carry in our mouths the legacy of our evolution. Our teeth are like living fossils that can be studied and compared to those of our ancestors to teach us how we became human. In Evolution’s Bite, noted paleoanthropologist Peter Ungar brings together for the first time cutting-edge advances in understanding human evolution with new approaches to uncovering dietary clues from fossil teeth. The result is a remarkable investigation into the ways that teeth—their shape, chemistry, and wear—reveal how we came to be. Traveling the four corners of the globe and combining scientific breakthroughs with vivid narrative, Evolution’s Bite presents a unique dental perspective on our astonishing human development.