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192 METHODS OF FILLING TEETH.
acid still I always think that the odor is probably due to the
present.
fact that the dentist uses that remedy freely, so that he can smell it
whenever his own fingers get near to his nostrils. I have removed a
great many cotton root-fillings, and have noticed distinct odors in
all cases, but have been far from sweet.
nearly they They have been
of that order which is associated with the dead and the putrescent. In
some cases I have unearthed odors which were as vile as anything
that had ever assailed my olfactories. I will introduce here a case
from the of a dental friend which is instructive and
practice suggest-
ive. A physician called upon him, bringing his wife, concerning whose
condition the dentist was consulted. The was that at each
history
menstrual period the woman suffered greatly with neuralgic pains in
the uterine region. These increased in severity, and after a time
occurred as well in the face. This latter fact, coupled with the time
at which the symptoms had first presented, which was directly after
having a large amount of dentistry done, suggested to the mind of the
husband that possibly the teeth might be the distant cause of all the
trouble. My friend made an examination, and finding both central
incisors pulpless, hazarded the removal of gold fillings, when he dis-
covered that the roots were filled with cotton. This was removed, and
after sterilization were filled with and the cavities
they gutta-percha,
as before with gold. For six months the neuralgic pains occurred,
in much less severe shocks. As there was some
only improvement,
the husband was encouraged, but decided that there might be other
teeth in similar condition, and insisted upon the removal of all the
under which there was even a remote of
fillings possibility finding
cotton. This resulted in such a discovery in three more teeth, and
after treatment the was restored to health.
proper patient entirely
Never fill a root permanently with cotton.
Cements. The cements, so called, including oxychloride and oxy-
phosphate, must of course be relied upon in setting crowns, and
therefore if they serve in those cases it follows that they must be
reliable in This, however, must be modified, for where a crown
any.
is set, the canal is usually enlarged so considerably that the cement
is carried to all of the root. Where the natural crown
readily parts
is still in place, it might not always be possible to thoroughly fill the canal
with such a material. Some claim that lacks
plastic oxyphosphate
the virtues of oxychloride, but the statement, however authoritatively
asserted, would be hard to prove. There is one objection to either
which is important. It is difficult to remove them, should it be desir-
able to empty the canal.
Gutta-Pcrcha. This material, in some form, is used by the majority
of dentists, and rightfully so. The usual custom is to roll the white
into cones, which are warmed and into the
variety slightly pressed