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132 SEPARATION OF THE TEETH.

sels that enter the roots, pass to and supply the
pulp, he effected; this would be far more liable to
occur in the teeth of young persons, or before ma-
turity. There is in adults, however, a great diversity
in their susceptibility to injurious influences.
Mimy operators still prefer gradual separation, by
pressure. In order to secure the most successful
results, the conditions of the parts should be strictly
observed. The gums, periosteum, etc., should be in
a healthy condition; for much injury may be done
by attempting to separate teeth by pressure, when

the contiguous parts are in an irritable state. In
persons of a neuralgic diathesis, in those whose vital
energy is weak, and particularly in those whose con-
stitutional tendency is inflammatory, this operation
is scarcely admissible. If, in such cases, it is at-
tempted at all, it should be proceeded with very
carefully and gradually, and should be preceded by
constitutional treatment. There are many cases in
which it is best to make the separation partly by
pressure, and then to complete it by dressing off the

thin, friable edges of the cavity with the cutting
instrument or file. Whether the process is to be wholly

or only partly accomplished by pressure, should be
determined beforehand.
Various materials have been employed for sepa-
rating the teeth by gradual pressure, the chief of