Fang Filling. [Volume: 1, Issue: 6, January, 1860, pp. 296-297]

THE DENTAL COSMOS. And here let me say a word'about instruments. Dentists, particularly young ones,
are prone to use cutting instruments that are entirely too small for the purpose, and that are illy'
proportioned; a large heavy handle with a small blade, or a large blade and a very small handle. The
most of our instruments should be strong and heavy, and all of them well proportioned. There are
some small ones required, of course-for cavities in incisor teeth, for instance; but there should be
a great many more large ones than are usually found in a dentist's case. But it is of still more
importance to hae them sharp, as you can work much more rapidly, and with less pain to the patient.
In fact no dentist can be justified in using dull instruments, if it is possible for him to obtain a
whetstone. FANG FILLING. BY A. IN the July number of the Dental Register we find an editorial,
entitled "Thoughts on Fang Filling," by George. Watt. After recommending certain prophylactic
treatment, Dr. Watt suggests filling the crevices of teeth and leaving the fangs, from which the
nerve has been removed, without filling. The only objection urged against the practice of filling
fangs is, "that when the canal is filled through its entire length with gold, the fang (and of
course the periosteum) is subject to sudden changes of temperature, on account of the conducting
power of gold; and this we believe," says he, "to be a fruitful source of periostitis." We have
frequently heard this objection urged against fang filling, and have heard it recommended to fill
the point of the fang and the cavity of decay with gold, and the intervening space with some
non-conducting substance, to avoid the trouble here mentioned; but we have never yet been able to
see any good reason for this mixed practice. We have been in the habit of treating this class of
teeth for the last two years, and our experience has been that, after properly treating the fang,
the more perfectly we succeeded in filling the nerve cavity, the less trouble we have had with
periostitis. However correct the practice of not filling the nerve cavity may be, it seems to us
that the objection urged against filling "has no foundation in fact." The cases cited by Dr. Watt in
this and succeeding articles on this subject, are much more indicative of the beneficial effects of
the prophylactic treatment adopted than that gold in the fangs of these teeth would produce
periostitis. If (as in most cases it is) an exceedingly thin layer of dentine is sufficient to
protect the pulp from any very important changes on account of gold fillings, why is it that the
periosteum should be very seriously affected by gold in the fang of a tooth with the entire wall of
dentine between the gold and the periosteum? Will Dr. Watt tell us?