Page 287 - My FlipBook

come close together. Such spaces are usually a continual
annoyance in chewing food, for the reason that they hold
debris, which is crowded upon the gum septum at every effort
in mastication. If these are filled ever so well, without re-
storing the. original breadth of the interproximate space, by
moving the teeth apart, the proximate contact will neces-
sarily be flat and will continue to hold debris, which will be
forced upon the gum, and the difflculty will not be improved.
The remedy is in the restoration of a normal form by restor-
ing the breadth of the interproximate space and mesio-distal
breadth of the teeth with the normal form of the contact
point.
Cases will be presented frequently in which numbers of
teeth have been filled without making this restoration, and
the patient is in continual trouble, often to such a degree that
mastication is seriously limited, or serious disease has re-
sulted. In these cases the only remedy is in the restora-
tion of the normal form as above indicated by separating
the teeth and refilling.
Many cases are presented, in which the proximate con-
tacts are very broad and flat, and the embrasures narrow and
shallow. The teeth are thick at their necks and the proximate
surfaces very flat. When cavities have occurred in the proxi-
mate surfaces of such teeth, it is best, wherever possible, to
slightly increase the mesio-distal breadth of the teeth and
make the proximate contacts more prominent than they orig-
inally were. This will increase the breadth of the interproxi-
mate space and the embrasures, contribute to cleanliness,
give greater comfort in mastication and reduce the liability
to recurrence of decay.
The contact points hetzueen the teeth become flattened by
wear one upon the other, so that frequently, in middle-aged
or elderly people, certain of them become so much flattened
that they begin to hold stringy foods between them. This is
forced upon the gum septum in every effort at mastication,
causing pain, absorption of the gum septum and disease of
the peridental membrane, and in many cases, decay of the
teeth, beginning near the gingival line, occurs that is very
difficult to treat. Whenever these are noticed their treat-
ment should be undertaken. If they are presented early, be-
fore serious disease has resulted, it is often possible to sep-

275