An Original Case of Tin Dental Fillings from 18th Century Northern France

Abstract

During the 18th century, France was the leader in the field of dentistry, exemplified by Pierre Fauchard (1678-1761), who was given the title "the father of modern dentistry" for his comprehensive work, Le Chirurgien Dentiste. This paper examines an 18th century dental treatment in a barely 50-year-old male whose body was excavated from Saint Amé's Collegiate Church, Douai, France. This individual had 6 dental restorations, exceptional for that period. All fillings were on the occlusal surfaces of molars and extended at least to the superficial dentin. Panoramic and retro-alveolar radiography confirmed the presence of a radio-opaque filling material, and x-ray fluorescence (XRF) and x-ray diffraction analyses demonstrated the exclusive presence of tin in these restorations.

Dental Materials Applied to 3D and 4D Printing Technologies: A Review

“…to repair cavities, are the first materials used for dental restoration. In the 18th century, wax was introduced to obtain impressions, which were then filled with a mixture of plaster and cementum to fabricate oral models [ 1 ]. Ceramics were then introduced into dentistry to manufacture porcelain restorations [ 2 ].…”