Dentistry Family Surgeon In Denver
Advanced Dental Surgery in denver can restore both form and function to patients suffering from many different causes, but for people in earlier times, many of today’s treatable conditions were incurable. As long as people have roamed the earth, we have had problems with our teeth, gums, and jaws. Faced with missing or impacted teeth, infected jaws, and any number of hereditary problems, life for prehistoric man as far as our mouths were concerned was often literally a pain. Skulls have been found in Paleolithic graveyards that show evidence of dental surgery being performed almost 9,000 years ago. Elaborate ancient Etruscan dentures dating to 600 B.C.E. have been found and are on display in European museums today.
As dentures became common, many different materials were tried in efforts to restore the ability to chew food to those who had lost teeth. A particularly famous set, U.S. President George Washington’s, is on display at Mount Vernon. But contrary to legend, they were not made of wood but rather ivory, animal teeth, lead, and gold. Hippopotamus, elephant, and walrus ivory were all used in dentures, but eventually ivory became stained with use and gave off a foul odor, so natural teeth, both animal and human, became the material of choice. By the mid 18th century, dentures had become fairly common, and second-hand teeth were so common after the battle of Waterloo in 1815 that dentures became known for a time as “waterloo teeth.”
It wasn’t until the early 19th century that porcelain began being used, often embedded in Vulcanite, a rubber developed by the Goodyear family. The vulcanite allowed dentists to create a somewhat comfortable base for the teeth that fit the wearer exactly.
Today, dental surgery uses a variety of techniques to address many problems. With advances in small, powerful, and incredibly precise tools and the ability to create, shape, and implant man-made materials, the days of second-hand teeth and ivory held in place with wire are long gone. A dental Surgery implant can be made on-site and permanently affixed to the jaw. Patients who have suffered too much bone loss to support an implant can have bone grafted onto the jaw, strengthening it so that it can once again hold teeth. Impacted teeth that must be removed can be carefully sectioned and taken out through a minimal incision, and braces can be used to pull wayward teeth that may have once needed removal into the proper position.
Dental Advanced surgery denver now even includes facial reconstruction, repairing trauma to enable patients to once again lead normal lives. The same methods that can repair a shattered jaw or skull can be adapted to eliminate overbites and under bites by lengthening or shortening the lower jaw, allowing patients to chew and eat with their teeth in a comfortable alignment. Cleft lip and cleft palate surgery can give children a new outlook on life, literally making it possible for them to smile.
With a variety of techniques and man-made materials available, modern dental surgery can now restore both form and function to patients, giving them the chance to lead happy, productive lives once more.