Page 251 - My FlipBook

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Decayed teeth and stumps are sometimes the cause of a
diseased action in the gums, in consequence of the irritation
produced by them upon the gums. These last, at times,
make an effort to grow over the stumps, but the irritation
experienced from the latter often induces a preternatural
growth of the former, which is a kind of fungous excres-
cence. I have seen a case of this kind, which had attained
to a considerable magnitude. Tumours, perhaps, occasion-
ally grow from the gums, not connected with diseased teeth,
and which are much firmer than those produced from the
irritation of dead teeth and stumps, and are often the subject
of surgical operations. Mr. Fox removes them usually with
a ligature, as they are apt to bleed profusely from excision.
I give the following remarks and case from Mr. Fox's
book upon the subject of tumours, produced by stumps of
teeth, as being applicable to perhaps every case of this kind.
He says,* " Some time since, Mr. Cooper was applied to by
a lady who had an enlargement of the gums of the lower
jaw, which nearly filled up one side of the mouth : there were
several decayed stumps of teeth remaining, around which this
enlargement of the gums had taken place. Mr. Cooper sent
her to me for the purpose of extracting the stumps, intend-
ing when these had been removed, to extirpate the tumour.
The stumps being embedded in the gums, the operation was
unavoidably attended with laceration of the excrescence,
and consequently a considerable haemorrhage. A few days
after, the tumour became veiy flaccid and dark coloured ; it
then sloughed away in large pieces, so that a cure was effect-
ed without any other operation." This, I think, will be found
to be the case with all these tumours produced by the irrita-
tion of stumps of teeth. Take away the cause and the ef-

' Part H, page 82.
32