The Newtown bee., 1908-05-29

lies not only in the fact that the plate which Is a continual source of annoy anee to the person using It. IS done away with(the subject of skillfully performed crown and bridge operation being unaware of foreign substance in the mouthl but that under the more recent method the new teeth are as firm as those that.g grow in the Jaw, m cases where the teeth remaining in the jaw are not in such positions as to fur nish "abutments" for the bridges. however, the old method IS still of necessity employed. In every case that comes before him the dentist IS likely to discover an entirely new prob lem in crown and bridge work, and 1t IS his mechanical ingenuity-his engineer ing, lt may be called-in taking adyan- tage of conditions that makes for a successful operation.
 As an illustration of what has been accomplished by the crown and bridge system, there way be cited an opera tion only recently completed by Dr Beebe, who, while he admits that it is a respectable piece of work, declares that is by no means th. summit of den- tai achievement in that line. To this dentist there came an unhappy man of middle age who had had his four upper front teeth knocked out by an accident. lie was the. more concerned over the loss of the incisors, since, by reason of early neglect, he had previously been deprived of four molars and two bicus- pids, also from the upper jaw, one bi- cuspid and two molars being missing from each side, the other two bicus- pids those next the cuspids-were thoroughly sound, as was the third molar, or wisdom tooth, on the left side, and the second molar on the right
 Out of natures complement of l6' teeth in the upper jaw, the patient had retained only four in sound condition, and two with sound roots, and he was contemplating a cheerless future so far as participating in any other than the liquid pleasures of the table was con cerned. Dr Beebee found posterior abutements in the wisdom tooth on the one side and the second molar on the other, both of which he crowned with gold, and anterior abutments in the two imperfect bicuspids, which he re- moved at the roots, affixing gold-faced porcelain crowns. The other two bridges on either side of the mouth brought the number of teeth in the jaw up to 15.-the missing wisdom tooth not being replaced--and the patient was qualified for membership in a beefsteak club.
 Where filling in front tooth is re- quired and an exact imitation of the natural teeth is desired Chemical Por- celain is the filling material which exactly matches the color of the tooth structure and is permanent filling which takes the place of gold, or cement for the filling of the front teeth. It is not like the porcelain fill ings of inlays that others use which have to be baked in a furnace and then cemented into place, thus leaving a line or space from which the cement will wash out of, turning the tooth dark and letting the inlay fall out. but on the contrary, it is moulded into the cavity and does not rely upon any ce- ment to hold 1t.
 More marvellous than anything else in dentistry, perhaps, are the results obtained by the specialists in "ortho- dontia" and "orthopedia of the face, the word signifying the moving of mis- placed teeth to correct position and the phrase the correction and preven- tion of facial deformities brought about by defects of the teeth and jaws. Not only does the expert turn twisted teeth in their sockets, and straighteD those that are tilted, malposed, impacted, or otherwise out of alignment, but he brings a preparations jaw to its natural position, and rectifes almost any ir- regularities of the lower part of the face. While this work is easier and simpler with children, lis nevertheless successful, not only with adults, but with old men and women, although without ocular proof of what has been done in this direction the results would seem incredible.
 Most extraordinary results in ortho donia and orthopedia have been accom- plished by dental specialists in our large cities. One of these practition- CTS has invented what he calls the humane process, "-and presented it to the profession at large. The apparatus he has devised is transposed to meet the requirements of each particular dental malformations that may come before the operator, but it may be roughly described as a sort of wire harness for each tooth under treat ment, fastened to an anchorage over other teeth, a regulated force being applied by the use of tiny springs of varying strength, scientifically system atized. When the dental arch is to be broadened a U-shaped loop with spring is fastened inside it, and the pressure regulated in similar manner.
 From the clumsiness of this descrip- tion one would scarcely believe it pos sible that such an apparatus could be tolerated in the mouth for even the briefest period. Nevertheless, with so high degree of mechanical skill are the wires, loops. and springs Gall gen. orally of gold) adjusted that the pa- tient wears the device without serious inconvenience, and is able to eat with little difficulty. It seems astonishing also that degree of pressure so slight as not to cause the patient distress should be powerful enough +o move the