Dental materia medica and therapeutics : with special reference to the rational application of remedial measures to dental diseases a textbook for students and practitioners / by Hermann Prinz.

  • Prinz, Hermann, 1868-1957
Date:
1913
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Dental materia medica and therapeutics : with special reference to the rational application of remedial measures to dental diseases a textbook for students and practitioners / by Hermann Prinz. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    21/600
    The treating of abscesses, caries, and loose teeth seems to have been known. The Hindus were apparently very proud of their teeth. It is recorded that the use of tooth powders and washes, and especially the use of the tooth pick, “rinacarya,” were neces- sities of their daily toilet. As a tooth pick they employed a bitter tasting wood, which was chewed, producing a fibrous bundle, which was then used as a brush for the gums and the teeth. A tooth brush of this very same nature has been recently introduced in the United States and in Great Britain. In the writings of Hippocrates and Pliny frequent allusion is made to drugs which were especially advocated for diseases of the teeth and the mouth. IVith the simpler remedies—as hyssop, licorice, dog’s milk, goat’s butter, etc.—many disagreeable substances, especially of the ani- mal kingdom, were recommended. In Pliny’s writings we find, among other dental suggestions, that “if one wishes to be free from toothache, one should eat a whole mouse twice a month.” The tooth powders and lotions which were prescribed by the Greek physicians consisted principally of mixtures of burnt hartshorn, marble dust, wood ashes, burnt saltpeter, etc., and solutions of honey, aromatic vinegars, spiced wines, etc. Among the cultured Romans and Etruscans the care of the mouth and teeth consti- tuted an important item of their personal hygiene. The mouth preparations were principally represented by powders, pastes, and washes. Quite a variety of formulas for such preparations are found in the writings of Celsus, Scribonius Largus, Galen, Ser- vilius Damocrates, Apollonius Archistrator, and others. The re- moval of deposits from the teeth by skilled persons and the mak- ing of artificial substitutes for the lost organs were apparently ordinary occurrences. It seems that the artifex medicus dentium, the dental surgeon of the Romans, did not practice the mechanical part of his profession. Judging from the writings of Celsus, this was left to the man who dealt in other oiilioj^cdic su])plics, such as surgical instruments, crutches, etc. In tlie laws of the twelve tables (A. D. 30fi) special reference is made regarding the use of gold about tlie teeth. It was stated tliat tlie gold employed for such purposes did not have to be removed ju'ior to cremation. It is also of interest to note tliat in tlie epigrams of Martialis