One of the most famous and the oldest history of dentistry is an Egyptian history, which is around 4600 years old. The research has shown that dentist could have existed as early as 3000 BC in Egypt. It is believed by the researchers that Ancient Egyptian mummies have revealed that dental cavities as well as tooth abscesses were seen around 2500 BC. Following are speculations which based on the best evidence that is currently known about the Egyptian dentistry.
Hesi-Re is first well known dentist and is one of those great physicians who dealt with teeth issues. Dentists demand was very high at that time, even, because aristocrats of Ancient Egypt were very concerned with their oral health. They had servants, particularly attend to their teeth. There are several dental ailments that were present among that old time. Dentists dealt mainly with tooth pain caused by abscesses, dental caries, or possibly other diseases such as gingivitis.
Many of the teeth issues that existed were a direct result of poor dental hygiene. There is no proof of any kind of hygiene items such as a toothbrush in Ancient Egypt. Most mummies show lots of tartar on the teeth as well as bone loss. The food eaten those times no matter poor or richer also contributed to tooth ailments. The flour for their bread was ground on rough stones which would often produce pieces of stone into the bread. They also ate lots of vegetables which included sand from the soil.
There are very few treatments that dentists could offer their patients in Ancient Egypt. There is no actual written proof is available that extractions or drilling were performed, but historical proof supports the fact that they were. The Ancient Egyptians are known for work that they did with the drill. Fossil evidence has shown holes in the plates of jawbones. It is also believed that dental practitioners performed extraction for many problems of the mouth. The pain that was inflicted during these days had been excruciating. All of these procedures were performed without the use of modern day anesthetics or nitrous oxide. Many of the remedies that we know of were learned by reading the Papyrus Ebers.
