when dentistry faced the unexplained

When the scientific journal The Dental Cosmos began publication in 1860, a series of articles attracted the attention of dental specialists. In several different cities of the United States there had been reported cases in which patients’ teeth erupted violently after experiencing severe pain.

One of the most famous cases occurred in 1817, in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. A venerable one began to experience a toothache so severe that, in the words of dentist WH Atkinson, “it drove him mad”. During his moments of agony, the honor took desperate measures in search of relief.

The surprising turn of events happened the next day, when after a sharp sound, similar to a shothis tooth broke into pieces and brought immediate relief to the venerable.

He ran back and forth, even burying his head in the ground or plunging it into cold water in a desperate attempt to find comfort. However, the surprising turn of events happened the next day, when after a sharp sound, similar to a shot, his tooth broke into pieces and brought immediate relief to the venerable. These stories were not isolated incidents.

Dentist WH Atkinson also described two other similar cases in 1830 and 1855, in which individuals experienced excruciating pain before their teeth erupted. The editors of the British Dental Journal recently unearthed vivid correspondence from its archives, originally published in 1965, detailing many other stories filed under the “dentin explosion.”

In some cases, these outbreaks were very violent. So much so Its force could knock people down or leave them deaf for a while.. There have even been several reports in London where a man lost his front tooth while chewing on a piece of bread. The tooth flew across the room and hit a child in the head, causing a minor injury. Another case happened in France, where the tooth flew across the room and hit her husband in the face, causing a bruise.

Explosive theories

Stories of situations in which teeth erupted proliferated around the world, but in a curious way there were no further documented reports since the 1920s. Would our ancestors’ teeth have been more unstable?

Given the rarity of these events and their apparent lack of explanation, 19th century scientists and dentists began a quest to understand what was going on. One of Early theories were that a gas was building up inside a decayed tooth. and that caused the explosion. This theory was ruled out as there is no such release of gas in a diseased tooth.

Atkinson also laid out a theory on his observations. He suggested it the cavity may have caused a build-up of gas from spoiled food or an infection, which eventually caused the tooth to break. Although it is a bit more reliable, the reality is that dentists are skeptical as the teeth are very strong and the pressure is unlikely to cause them to erupt.

Fillings and cavities

A more recent theory proposes a possible explanation based on the composition of dental fillings used in that period. During the 19th century, various metals, including tin and lead, were used to fill tooth cavities.

Mixing metals can lead to spontaneous electrolysis, generating gas inside a tooth. This gas may have caused the tooth to erupt under certain conditions, such as pressure or heat exposure.

If two different metals were used in the same mouth, this would win they create a kind of “battery” in the human mouth. Mixing metals can lead to spontaneous electrolysis, generating gas inside a tooth. This gas may have caused the tooth to erupt under certain conditions, such as pressure or exposure to heat, such as when smoking a cigarette.

Although these theories offer possible explanations for cases of tooth eruption, We still don’t have a final answer. Since these events became increasingly rare and eventually disappeared around the 1920s, it is difficult to conduct direct research on the phenomenon. However, what is certain is that modern dentistry has advanced significantly and cases of tooth eruption are virtually non-existent today.