Evening star., 1936-01-23
NEW ANESTHET|C
PUZZLES DENTISTS
D. c. Doctors Are SkepticaI
of "PainIess Dentistry"
Formula Value.

OlStr1ct 0entlStS are awaiting with
interest and some scepticism further
details Of the painless dentistry"
formula announced by DR.. Leroy L.
Hartman Of Columbia University be-
fore a joint meeting Of the two New
York City dental societies Tuesday
night.
They are impressed by the great
enthusiasm shown by those who lis
tened to DR.. Hartman, but at the
same time are puzzled by some Of the
details. So far as known one copy
Of the actual formula has been re-
ceived in Washington, aside from the
newspaper reports, and the dentists
here are waiting for case reports on
the effects when the three ingredients
are used In exact proportions.
Three Ingredients Combined.
The formula calls for a combination
of ether, alcohol and thymol. These
three ingredients, In various propor-
tions, have been used by dentists for
so years and are in all text books
Of dental surgery. 1t was pointed out.
DR.. Stephen c. Hopkins. president
Of the District OF Columbia Dental
Society. today stressed the point that
judgment must be deferred until local
dentists have used the formula In ac-
tual practice.
The new anesthetic, as described
In reports of the New York meetings,
acts as q tooth desensitizer. A tooth
is composed OF three parts-the en-
amel, the dentine and the pulp. Pre-
vious theories Of dental analgesia, ac-
cording to DR.. Hartman. have pro-
ceeded on the assumption that there
were no nerve or sensitive filaments
in the dentine and that any pain felt
is due to pressure on the nerves
below.
Worked 20 Years on Discovery.
He has been working on his discov-
cry for 20 years. Two years ago, he
said. he decided that the dentine con-
tanned tissues which transmitted SEN
sation to the nerves He called these
tissues lipoids. Some analgesics. he
noted. worked fairly we'll and these
were substances which held the lipoids
IN solution for a short time.
He experimented with known lipoid
solvents. hitting finally on ether aud
alcohol. But these. he said, evapo-
rated quickly. SO his problem was to
prevent this evaporation. He settled
on thymol, which. he said, not only
prevents evaporation but also aids the
penetration of the solvents.
In the applying OF the solution. the
enamel of the tooth is Scraped away
not painful operation, in which the
usual feeling is simply a grating or
jarring-apd then a cotton pellet
moistened with the solution is applied
to the tooth to be treated. This ap-
plication makes a childs tooth inselsi-
tive within one minute and an adults
within 80 seconds.
Effective About an Hour,
When the moist cotton is removed,
blast of warm air is directed against
the tooth, which crystallizes the
thymol, avoiding evaporation Of the
anesthetizng solution, which remains
effective for about an hour. 1t is so
effective. DR.. Hartman says. that the
patient does not know which tooth is
being filled. 1t had been successful
in about 500 cases, he said. and he
showed reports of 20 cases. many of
them Of patients with sensitive teeth,
who suffered no pain.
The solution is not hurtful to the
pulp or to any part of the mouth. ac-
cording to DR.. Hartman. He recalled
that in few of his cases. where gen.
erous swabs had been used and a drop
or two had spilled on the tongue or
the gums. the patient complained of a
burning sensation, but this was ended
by a mouthwash Of bicarbonate OF
soda.
DR.. Hartman warned that the public
should not try to use the solution to
relieve toothache; only dentists should
apply 1t.