Dentists

Last week the city of Louisville was converted almost literally into one great dental parlor. About 10,000 dentists of the U. S. and Canada--members of the American Dental Association and allied organizations--were present for the 67th annual meeting of that body.

The four leading hotels and others overflowed with dentists and their wives, their offspring. In addition to the A. D. A. there convened three national dental fraternities--Delta Sigma Delta, Psi Omega, Xi Psi Phi, as well as the National Association of Dental Examiners and three female groups: American Dental Assistants Association, American Dental Hygienists, Federation of American Women Dentists.

One of the features of the meeting was an exhibit in the Kosais Temple of dental appurtenances. One hundred and sixty-four firms made displays. Dental tools, dental chairs, gold and silver for fillings, devices and contrivances, including the universally dreaded ogre of the modern world--the buzzing drills that find tender spots in all civilized mouths. The exhibit because of the precious metals included, was valued at $2,000,000 and eight detectives guarded it night and day.

The dentists held meetings, attended clinics, lectures. The chief public aspect of the meeting was the attention paid to dentistry for children. On one morning visiting dentists went to every public school in the city and talked on dentistry. On another morning, similar talks were given in parochial schools. A meeting was held to which the public was invited; the importance of dentistry for children was explained.

Said Professor Willis A. Sutton, Superintendent of Public Schools at Atlanta:

"Good teeth are an economic necessity as well as a necessity to the growth and development of the child. Children with infected teeth invariably are found to be subnormal and behind their regular classes. Experiments and work among the children of Atlanta schools have proved this conclusively. It has been proved in every community in America. Save the teeth and you save the men and women of tomorrow."

Said Dr. Thomas D. Wood of Columbia University:

"Defects of the teeth are the most frequent and most numerous of all the health defects of childhood. In the great majority of the schools, both rural and urban, of this proud and prosperous nation, from 50 to 98% of the children have defective teeth--health defects which are actually or potentially dangerous and detrimental to health, normal development, and to sound education. The correction of the dental defects of the youth of America is the largest problem in the entire range of correction of remediable physical health handicaps.

"Some one has attempted to estimate the number of hours, days months, years, and decades of dental treatment by all the dentists in the United States today that would be necessary to fill the solvable carious teeth of the children of America at the present time. The figures in the estimate are like some of the mathematical calculations of the astronomer--they stagger the imagination. This task is not impossible, but it is as colossal as it is important."