NIEVA,RUTH Y.

ASDT-2

Dentistry was being practiced when the medical profession was in its infancy. Infancy-(a beginning or early period of existence) Romans cannot lay claim to being the first dentally advanced civilization-that honour lies with their earlier Tuscan neighbours,the Etruscans. Honour-( high respect; great esteem) They certainly practiced a form of dentistry, based on medical ideas inherited from the Greeks.

Roman dental care was sophisticated for its time, and historian James Wynbrandt has describe it as The zenith of the ancient worlds oral-care arts. Sophisticated-(highly complicated or developed) James Wynbrandt-(Author of the Excruciating History of Dentistry) Excruciating-( causing great pain or anguish)

By the first century AD, Roman citizens in need of dental care could choose between: a tooth-drawer-( Who would only pull teeth) a barber-surgeon-( Who would have concentrated on bloodletting and the cosmetic shaping of teeth) or a physician specializing in dentistry.

Encyclopedist-A person who writes for or compiles an encyclopedia. Writing about the time of Tiberius. Tiberius-2nd Emperior of the Roman Empire from 14 AD to 37 AD.(After Death) Describe in detail the surgical instruments used by the physicians of his day and included among them forceps and a special instrument known as tenaculum for the extraction of

the roots of the teeth.

Like Hippocrates did not believe in magic. He believed that General Physical deterioration caused dental diseases. Deterioration-( The process of growing worse, or the state of having grown worse. For toothaches he prescribed: *Hot water Formentations formentations-(the therapeutic application of warmth and moisture, as to relieve pain.)

*Narcotics- a drug (opium or morphine) that in moderate doses dulls the senses, relieves pain, and induces profound sleep but in excessive doses causes stupor, coma, or convulsions. Stupor-(a state of unconsciousness) *Counter irritants-An agent that induces local inflammation to relieve inflammation in underlying or adjacent tissues.

* Use of the cautery-an instrument that destroys tissue by burning. *Extraction of badly broken down teeth. -He recommended filling the cavity with lead prior to extraction as a means of lessening the chance of fracturing the crown.

He wrote one of the most authoritative compendiums of medical knowledge in ancient times. compendium-(A short, complete summary; an abstract) other subjects were taken up in Celsus book: *the use of the file to smooth fractured crowns. *the repositioning of malposed newly erupted permanent teeth. malposed-(Characterized by malposition) *the treatment of Jaw fractures. *the ligation of loose teeth to stabilize them.

Ligation-(The state of being bound) Stabilize-(to make stable, steadfast, or firm) He also considered the need for oral hygiene black stains on the teeth were to be scraped off and the teeth rubbed with a mixture of pounded rose leaves, gallnuts, and myrrh, after which the mouth was to be rinsed with pure wine.

Roman physician who wrote extensively on dental treatment. extensively-(great in amount, number, or degree) Among his various suggestions for treating toothache was the following passage, which gave further credence to the ancient notion that a toothworm was responsible for dental caries:

Suitable against toothache are fumigations made with the seeds of the hyoscyamus ( probably belladonna or henbane)scattered on burning charcoal, these must be followed by rinsing of the mouth with hot water, in this way, sometimes, as it were, small worms are expelled.

credence-(something supporting a claim to belief; claim to acceptance; trustworthiness) notion-(a theory or belief held by a person or group) fumigations-(the application of a gas or smoke to something for the purpose of disinfecting it) Belladonna/Henbane seeds-(Exotic Psychedelic Plants) Psychedelic-(mind manifesting;distortions of perception)

Great naturalist who died during the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD) Mt.Vesuvius-(a stratovolcano in the Gulf of Naples,Italy) Described a cure for toothache that consisted of finding a frog in the light of the full moon, prying open its mouth and spitting into it, and uttering some such formula as:

 Frog, go, and take my toothache with thee! He mentioned an even more bizarre toothache preventive; *to bite off the head of a live mouse twice a month(although he was careful to add that he would not vouch for the efficacy of the treatment.) Bizarre-(strikingly out of the ordinary ; involving sensational contrast or incongruities) Vouch-(assert or confirm as a result of ones own experiences that something is true or accurately.)

Physician who practiced dentistry in Rome. He followed Hippocrates recommendation to observe and study and then make a diagnosis and plan of treatment. He considered the greatest physician since Hippocrates, was the first to recognize that a toothache could be: *Pulpitis-(inflammation of the pulp) *Pericementitis-(inflammation of radicular portion of the tooth)

He classified teeth into centrals, cuspids and molars. He had a tremendous reputation and served as physician to the emperor Septimius Severus. Septimius Severus- (the first African emperor of the Romans) In time, however, as his reputation grew, he abandoned this course, basing his theories as well as his practice upon beliefs and assumptions rather than observations.

Tooth powders- (a mildly abrasive mixture used to scrub teeth clean). Were already in existence before Rome came into being, and continued to be used by the Romans, often with flavoring agents being added to give fresher breath. There were no toothbrushes yet at this time, so the powders were applied with the fingers. Toothpicks would also have been available to help keep the mouth clean.

If that wasnt felt to be sufficient, Romans could also apply a mouthwash; the first urine of the day was promoted by medical experts of the time as having medicinal properties when rinsed around the mouth. The urine of young boys was, apparently, considered the best sort for this purpose.

Romans were skilled in restoring carious teeth with gold crowns and replacing missing teeth by means of fixed bridgework. Dental restorations had become quite sophisticated, and full and partial dentures were not uncommon. The Romans were not especially gifted in their dental art. They barrowed their medicine from the Greeks and restorative dentistry from the Etruscans. the end.!!!