Buzz
A trip to the dentist often feels as unpleasant as a colonoscopy, frequently sparking fear and anxiety in patients. These 10 captivating tales delve into the fascinating, historical, and sometimes bizarre aspects of the esteemed field of dentistry.
10. Honest Abe’s Use of Chloroform
Abraham Lincoln suffered from severe dental anxiety, stemming from a botched tooth extraction in 1841 that caused part of his jawbone to break. The 16th U.S. president endured this excruciating pain without the use of anesthesia.
Years later, when a severe toothache struck, Lincoln was far from amused. He pulled out a bottle of chloroform from his pocket, inhaled it, and signaled for the procedure to start as he drifted into unconsciousness.
Chloroform's use as an anesthetic was not widely known at the time, leaving many to wonder how Lincoln discovered its effects. Today, the president doesn’t need to go far for dental care, thanks to Herbert Hoover, who set up a dental office in the White House's subbasement.
9. Burning Flesh and Arsenic
As early as 2700 BC, the Chinese employed acupuncture to alleviate pain from tooth extractions, decay, gingivitis, stomatitis, and glossitis. They identified 116 points on the body's surface thought to be directly connected to teeth and other oral structures.
Moxibustion, a method involving the burning of mugwort, was frequently paired with acupuncture to promote healing. The aged mugwort was ground into a stick, lit, and often applied to the patient’s skin to produce therapeutic effects.
This technique was thought to provide pain relief, enhance blood flow, stimulate vital energy, and improve overall health. By the 2nd century AD, the Chinese started using arsenic to treat tooth decay, believing it would kill the tooth's pulp and alleviate pain simultaneously.
8. Painless Parker
In the early 1900s, Edgar Parker devised unique ways to ease his patients' fears through unconventional distractions. After a business slump, he traveled across the U.S. in a horse-drawn wagon, accompanied by showgirls, nurses, and buglers.
In each town, Parker captivated crowds with his flamboyant performances, pulling teeth while offering patients whiskey and hydrocaine, a cocaine-based anesthetic. Eventually, he became known as “Painless Parker” and famously wore a necklace made of 357 teeth.
He boasted of extracting all the teeth in one day, earning the ire of The American Dental Association, which labeled him a “threat to the profession’s dignity.”
To avoid legal issues over false advertising, Parker officially changed his name from “Edgar” to “Painless.” His flamboyant methods paid off, and he retired with a fortune of $3 million.
7. A Thriving Dental Practice
Alberto Nunez, a 32-year-old from Chicago, ran a successful dental practice for more than two years, seeing approximately 30 patients weekly. The high demand often meant patients waited up to a week for an appointment. His career prospects were exceptionally bright.
The catch? Nunez wasn’t a licensed dentist, and his practice operated out of a residential property.
After receiving a tip, the Special Operations Unit launched an investigation into Nunez’s illegal practice. An undercover officer, posing as a patient, scheduled an appointment and confirmed that Nunez performed various dental procedures such as root canals, surgeries, bite impressions, cleanings, and braces.
In 2012, Nunez faced charges including a Class 4 felony for unlicensed practice and a misdemeanor for illegally possessing hypodermic syringes.
6. Ancient Dental Practices
The ingenuity of prehistoric people continues to astonish researchers, with evidence of tooth drilling dating back over 7,500 years in what is now Pakistan. A jawbone found in a Slovenian cave reveals the earliest known dental filling—a beeswax patch used to soothe pain from a cracked tooth.
This ancient treatment was also used in Egypt 2,100 years ago when a young man suffered from a severe sinus infection caused by multiple dental abscesses.
Andrew Wade, a researcher from the University of Western Ontario, explains that linen soaked in medicine was used to alleviate pain and placed inside cavities to block food debris. Dentistry in ancient Egypt traces back to the era of pyramid construction.
5. Glennon Engleman
Glennon Engleman was a well-regarded dentist in his community, but behind his professional facade lurked a dark and malevolent individual, comparable to history’s most infamous killers. His reign of terror lasted over two decades, employing methods like shootings, beatings, and car bombs. He even tossed a man down a well with dynamite to ensure his victim’s death.
While police were convinced of Engleman’s guilt, it was his third wife who ultimately sealed his fate. After a night together, Engleman boasted about his murders and hinted she might be next. Detectives convinced her to wear a wire, leading to his self-incrimination and ending the terror that haunted St. Louis.
In September 1980, Engleman was convicted of killing Sophie Marie Barrera with a car bomb and received two life sentences. Though suspected in 12 murders, he admitted to only five. He died in prison in 1999 at the age of 71.
4. Harsh Medical Practices
Contrary to common myths, George Washington’s dentures were crafted from hippopotamus ivory, not wood. These dentures are now exhibited at the National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore. While it’s no shock that Washington’s dental health was poor—he had just one tooth at his inauguration—his lifelong health struggles likely contributed to his dental issues.
Beyond surviving smallpox, Washington endured numerous illnesses, including malaria, dengue fever, rheumatic pain, and dysentery. His treatments, such as mercurous chloride, were harsh and eroded his tooth enamel, causing constant toothaches.
This resulted in frequent gum inflammation and abscessed teeth, necessitating annual extractions. Historians suggest that dental issues were the reason Washington skipped delivering his second inaugural address.
3. Dr. Hugo Blaschke and Hitler’s Remains
On April 30, 1945, Adolf Hitler took his own life. His body was burned in a bomb crater in the Reich Chancellery garden and discovered by Russian forces three days later. In 1973, dental experts examined his jaw remains, putting an end to widespread speculation about his death.
Comparing the remains to dental records from Hugo Blaschke, Hitler’s US-trained dentist, was both revealing and satisfying, considering the suffering endured by such a despicable individual.
Describing Hitler’s teeth as “very bad” would be an understatement. He suffered from severe gum disease, abscesses, and decay caused by advanced periodontal issues, leading to painful dental reconstructions. This also contributed to his “horrible breath.”
2. Stress Can Be Deadly
Recent studies in dental literature reveal that dentists face higher risks of physical and emotional challenges, including alcoholism, drug addiction, marital issues, and suicide. In fact, dentists have a suicide rate three times higher than other white-collar professionals and more than double that of the general population.
However, the leading cause of death among dentists is stress-induced cardiovascular disease, with rates of high blood pressure and coronary issues 25 percent higher than the general population. This raises the question of why the dental profession is more susceptible to stress, mental health challenges, and social difficulties.
Research shows that the isolation of working solo, combined with fierce competition and financial pressures, often results in burnout. This leaves dentists emotionally and mentally drained, fostering negative attitudes toward patients, staff, and themselves. Additionally, dealing with anxious patients triggers physiological stress responses in dentists, contributing to early cardiovascular problems.
1. Scavengers
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, sugar consumption increased, as did the practice of whitening teeth with acidic solutions. As tooth enamel wore away, the demand for false teeth surged. This created an opportunity for some of society’s poorest to capitalize on the growing market.
Since dentures made with human teeth could sell for over £100, some impoverished individuals resorted to extracting their own teeth to sell them to affluent dental patients. When living donors became scarce, attention turned to the battlefield at Waterloo, where thousands of fallen soldiers lay.
In 1815, surviving soldiers, locals, and even scavengers from Britain began harvesting teeth from the dead to sell to dental craftsmen. These teeth were boiled, shaped, and fitted onto ivory dentures. The UK’s Anatomy Act of 1832, which regulated the handling of human remains, eventually curbed the use of human teeth in denture-making.
