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CHAPTER II

REMOVAL OF TARTAR

After attending to any teeth that have ached, it is
always advisable to remove all tartar from the teeth.
This is often a tedious and usually an uninteresting
operation, and its proper performance is frequently
neglected. To remove tartar in a neat and efficient
manner, with as little laceration of the gums as pos-
sible, demands considerable skill, and often consider-
able time. No exact rules can be laid down for the
performance of this operation, for both the operative
technique, as well as the selection of instruments,
will greatly depend on individuality.
For general purposes the removal of tartar may
be described as best effected by first breaking up
or chipping away the main bulk of the incrusta-
tion, and then scraping away the smaller particles
that are left adhering to the teeth. To begin with
the lower incisors ; it will often be found that passing
a very thin, chisel-like scaler between the necks of
these teeth from the front dislodges a good deal of
the deposit from the lingual surfaces. If this can-
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