Meet The World’s First Official Orthodontist
ORTHODONTIC TREATMENT—IN SOME FORM—HAS BEEN AROUND for a very long time. Archaeologists have discovered ancient Etruscans, Greeks, and Egyptian mummies with dental fixtures designed to improve the alignment and appearance of their teeth.
However, what we refer to as modern orthodontics didn’t really come into its own until a man by the name of Edward H. Angle came along…
Edward was raised in Pennsylvania and graduated from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery in 1876. From that time forward, Edward found himself increasingly drawn to the field of orthodontics. Orthodontics existed in the 1800’s, but it was but a fringe interest—not a dental specialty. Dr. Angle was the first official “orthodontist”, changing his dental practice to work exclusively in orthodontics in 1899.
Dr. Angle Used Orthodontics To Improve Both Appearance And Function
Here are some of the things we have to thank Dr. Angle for:
- He coined the term malocclusion, and created a classification system we still use today to categorize and diagnose unbalanced bites.
- He made sure that orthodontists focused on healthy balance and proper tooth position, as well as aesthetics.
- He founded the first school of orthodontics and created the American Society of Orthodontia to forward development and research in the field.
Since Dr. Angle’s Time…
We’ve made huge advancements in the field of orthodontics since Dr. Angle’s days. We now have brackets that are bonded to teeth instead of wrapping around teeth. We even have metal-free bite correction. New technologies make braces more comfortable, faster, and more effective. Much of this is a result of the foundation that Dr. Angle built.
If you ever have any questions about what it means to have an orthodontics specialist correcting your teeth, let us know!
