The Washington times., 1915-12-13


Nothing" speaks these words Of
wisdom. Il prny thee, peace;
will be flesh and blood. for there
was never yet philosopher that could
endure toothache patiently"
Toothache is often endured tolerably
well, even by those who are not stoics.
Those who pay too much attention to a
pain feel the agonizlng darts a thou
sandf0il more than persons whose
minds are entirely taken up with other
matters. which act as counter-irritantA
The destruction Of the pulp Of a tooth
gives rise to most cases Of tootache.
Lowered vitality of the tooth from i'm
fectionS. maladies, blows, accidents.
pyorrhoea and visits too few or far he
tween to a good dentist cause the death
of the pulp. which products toothacle.
Death OF tooth pulp is due usually TO
decay When the protecting covering
of dentin becomes so thin ne to trans
init readily sensations of heat and cold
to the pulp and to allow irritating
fluids to reach II, the delicately or
ganiZed structure OF the tooth's III
terror is quickly irritated. and conges-
ton follows more or less rapidly. IL is
diagnosis between an actual exposure
OF the pulp and a condition that APP
proachos actual exposure. The symp-
toms merge into one another and the
quite impossible at times to determine
tust how far the trouble hes gone.
Relief For TOOthache.
The pain is frequently greater before
exposure OF the pulp has actually taken
place. Irritation causes congestion with
distention Of the small blood-vessels,
and confinement within the unyielding
walls Of the pulp-chamber produces
great pressure and gives rise to that
Intense form OF suffering known as
| jumping" tooteche.
There Is no absolute remedy for pulp
| irritation. with or without exposure, eK-
| cept such treatment as can be provided
| by the dentist 1t may happen. how
| ever. that Il Is inconvenient or impos-
sibIe to consult a dentist at once. and
In such instances temporary relief will
sometimes be found I'm saturating a bit
T, OF cotton with oil OF cloves or oil OF
peppermint and placing 1t in the cavity
| Of the tooth. The cavity should be
1 washed out hrst as carefully as possible
/ with warm water. The following pre-
| scription used In the same manner az
oil OF cloves. has=been found effective
In some cases:
Essence peppermint ..........1k dram
Choral hydrat ..."......,...... l cram
Camphorae ,..................... / dram
1t Is well to remember that toothache
/ from an exposed pulp will recur again
and again until the tooth Is properly
treated by dentist.
Problems of Dead Teeth.
Another excruciating!y painful form
of toothache is that which occurs after
the tooth Is dead 1t Is always a sur
l -
tooth can give pain. Strictly speaking
the source OF trouble in the cases Is ro'
in the tooth itself, but in the mem-
brane surrounding the root and invest
ing the root socket, which becomes IN
tiamed usually from some septic inhu'
ence. The first symptom Is teehm;
of discomfort. and perhaps, a siSh
soreness in the tooth The tooth elon
gates and the pain increases. The DalT
Is usually greater at night and sleep II
interrupted. Swelling is noticed aroun,
the root OF the tooth. and may eNton'
over the entire face on the ane;tet
side and to the neck as well. ~.
II. before this exaggerated conoluoI
is reached, the tooth Is drilled into
discharge of pus through the openlni
SO made will sometimes be seen Al
these fortunate cases the relief iron
pain will be almost instantaneous II
other cases the abscess whch NJ
formed at the end Of the root viii ~ ~
crease in size until the pus finds ~
way 10 the surface of the gum an i
DISCHARGED The affected parts thel
gradually assume their normal size ant
appearance, and the tooth may caas
no more trouble until lowered vitalil'
or exposure to cold or some other calls
starts up another inflammation.
1t is unsafe 10 take any risk with
dead tooth. If neglected, 1t ma
cause disease of the antrum. which !
likely to affect the eyes. ears, or tn
glands OF the neck. In children dea
teeth are. perhaps, among the mos
common causes OF enlarged and dis
eased glands. which so frequently 7"
0uire removal by a surgeon.
! Almost everything In the nature q
a facial pain that caunot be eastl
located 10 attributed to neuralgia, an
either morphine or some equal
harmful drug is prescribed for its re
lief. Sometimes the patient Is ad
vised TO bear the pain in the hope {
it's ahatIng without treatment. Man
OF these are intermittent, and the pa
tient, thanking heaven for he intel
missions. resigns himself to a life
time OF suffering.
As a matter OF observation. neU
ralEic disturbances will often
found, practically, to have the
origin in a diseased tooth. In a
~ .