Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: [Collection of reprints]. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University Libraries/Information Services, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the the Augustus C. Long Health Sciences Library at Columbia University and Columbia University.
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![seated in the bracket, as in Fig. 4, or sprung and bent as it is carried lingually and seated in the bracket, as in Fig. 10, without any undue strain on the bracket. In seating the arch as in Fig. 10 its two ends are first engaged in the curvilinear sheaths, the nuts having been turned well forward so that they will in no way interfere with the bending of the arch as it is brought into bracket relations by means of the pliers. Not until the arch has been seated in the brackets should the nuts be moved to their proper ten- sion relations with the anchor sheaths. I am sure you will derive much satis- faction from the use of these pliers. LOCK PINS. The original dimensions of the main shaft of the lock pins were .010 by .010. In experience. pins of these di- mensions proved too small, in some cases, to afford the necessary locking- strength. As now made they are .010 by .010 near their points, gradually in- creasing in diameter antero-posteriorly to .014 at the beginning of their heads, this additional width making them amply strong. Now let me here interpolate a word with regard to measurements. Those of you who still persist in employing the much out of date gage should change your system of measurement and learn to think in thousandths of an inch through owning and employing a small micrometer which is far more accurate, definite, scientific and up to date. The pins are made of a fine quality of brass. Some of you have requested that they also be made of pure gold or of some alloy of precious metals. I have no doubt the manufacturers will be glad to supply them to you in precious metal. For my own needs, however, I much pre- fer them of brass, as I have been unable to find any precious metal alloy that equals brass in toughness and strength, though I early experimented quite ex- tensively with alloys. Although in their immediate region brass pins may cause slight discoloration of the ribbon arch, if the patient does not give regular and ])roper attention to oral cleanliness, yet the proper cleansing of the teeth by the patient being easily pos&ible when this mechanism is used, there should be no real objection to the use of brass pins. And here let me interpolate another word. All agree that the teeth should be kept properly cleansed during ortho- dontic treatment and much has been said and written on the subject. Many orthodontists devote much time at each appointment of their patients to the spraying and cleansing of the patient's teeth, and strongly advocate this pro- cedure. Now I radically disapprove of it, or the transference to the ortho- dontist of the work which rightfully belongs to the patient. It is the or- thodontist's duty to place only such mechanism upon the teeth as will not interfere with their regular, systematic brushing and cleansing by the patient at least twice a day, and then he should in- sist on the patient's doing it, for the time and effort of the orthodontist should be more advantageously employed. If a patient does not keep his teeth clean and the orthodontic mechanism bright, it is clear that he is lax in his duties and should be disciplined. At our last meeting I recommended that in order to clinch the pins in the brackets they should be bent forward and upward. Experience has proved, how- ever, that they are more in the way of the lips of the patient and that it is more difficult to straighten them for their removal when so bent than when they are bent to one side. The point of the pin is grasped with a pair of close- fitting pliers (the flat beaks of the arch- bending pliers serve admirably for this purpose) and drawn through the bracket until its head rests firmly against the ribbon arch which has already been fully seated within the bracket. With full tension still maintained the pin is now drawn sharply at right angles to the bracket (as in a, Fig. 30), thus giving it a sharp bend and firm clinch. Now, without in the least disturbing the bend, the pin should be clipped off close to the side of the bracket (as in b. Fig. 30), leaving no projection and requiring no](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21229818_0073.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
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