A Little Background on Orthodontics.
Man’s attempts to change his smile by using braces goes back thousands of years. Orthodontics dates back to the time of the Egyptians – mummies have been found with wires on their teeth, resembling braces. Back around 400 BC, Hippocrates wrote regarding hard work to smooth down teeth. It’s clear that knowledge of using pressure to move teeth into a better alignment over a period of time, was present in ancient history.
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In 1850 the first modern attempt to correct the arrangement of teeth using added oral force was made. The dentist at the head of the movement was Dr. A pioneering dentist in the field was Dr. Norman Kingsley, who would go on to be the initial dean of the New York University College for Dentistry. For people of the past, having a set of completely healthy teeth was a rarity, so people typically did not pay any mind to a person’s bite.
In the late 1800’s, Dr. Angle published, “Angle’s Classification of Malocclusion.” The publication was an astounding achievement. He introduced the concept of “natural occlusion of the teeth” while explaining the “correct occlusion of the teeth.” Three types of malocclusion were described through his efforts. There are three classes of malocclusion: Class I refers to an improper occlusion line, Class II refers to an overbite, and Class III refers to an under-bite. Dr. Edward Angle along with some of his colleagues in the field of dentistry, established the American Association of Orthodontists.
When Angle’s groundbreaking work was finally published, the field of orthodontics was born to dentistry. It was still a long way from the orthodontic field we know today, but the center of attention had begun to change from merely straightening the teeth for looks, to actually learning about the types of malocclusion, and the exact ways to approved them.
As the century progressed, interest grew in the part that removing teeth could play in orthodontics. During the 1930’s dentist started doing experiments with enhancing the shape of the face with tooth pulling, making the teeth more aligned.
A decade later, radio-graphs were developed by dentists to permit them to view the developing bones in the mouth, and how these bones could affect the alignment of the teeth. Such a discovery proved that malocclusion is preventable by redirecting bone growth to change tooth alignment
Orthodontia research began charting undiscovered territory in the sixties, as
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it delved into the role surgery could play in fixing occlusion in people whose bone couldn’t develop any further.
Modern orthodontics has made significant advancements since those early days. Today, not only does it correct the alignment of the teeth for a more cosmetically pleasing experience, but it can also create a firm occlusal relationship.