The Birth of a Profession: Dentistry in the Nineteenth Century
Overview
The nineteenth century saw the rise of dentistry as a distinct profession, with its own practitioners, techniques, and standards. The emphasis of dental care shifted from simply removing painful teeth to trying to avoid extractions by filling cavities. By the end of the century, preventive dentistry sought ways to keep the cavities from developing in the first place. Nineteenth-century dentists were the first professionals to use anesthetic drugs, a development that made modern surgery possible.
Background
The writings of ancient Greek and medieval Moorish physicians described treatments for dental problems such as teething and diseases of the mouth. But the solution to most dental pain was to extract the offending tooth. Early physicians sometimes performed this procedure, but so did barbers and blacksmiths. False teeth were luxury items fashioned by jewelers and other skilled craftsmen. Folk healers, with their poultices and potions, were another option if care by a physician was unavailable or unaffordable. Some of their simple remedies, such as gargling with salt water, are still used today.
Like so many other fields, dentistry was put on a more scientific basis in the eighteenth century. The invention of the microscope in the 1700s had provided the means for understanding the structure of the tooth.
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