Abstract: A metal charm has the impression of the biting edges of teeth formed in it. It may also be formed in a rubber stamp.

Abstract: An oral pack retention system for use in covering a location in the mouth and including a retention fixture, a flexible wire and a mass of moldable pack material. The retention fixture has a central portion which is adapted to be along the side of the tooth and a pair of spaced arms which extend away from the central portion to define an opening and to be anchored in the mass. The flexible wire is adapted to extend around the tooth and to be fastened to the central portion of the fixture. The mass of moldable material is molded to the fixture so that it covers the location in the mouth.

Abstract: The cervical matrix in question is universal as each exemplar is suitable to be applied to a considerable number of teeth of different shape, therefore few ranges of matrices of different curvature (for incisor, canine and molar teeth of adults and children) suffice to cope with all the requirements. The matrix has a lamina (1) transparent to ultraviolet and luminous rays curved with a radius of curvature (r) less than that of the teeth to which it is applied. To the lamina is fixed a stem (2) which permits of grasping it with the forceps and pressing it against the tooth subjecting for a few seconds the whole to ultraviolet or visible irradiations to effect the beginning of the process of polymerization of the filling material after which the matrix is detached and the polymerization continued.

Abstract: An apparatus for use in curing dental restorative materials by means of visible (or ultraviolet) light. High intensity light is transmitted from a light box to the operative site by a fiber-optic cable and a hand-held light wand, the wand having a tip for directing the light towards the polymerizable material at the site of restoration. Proper spacing of the tip from the material to be cured is achieved by a conical shield which also functions to concentrate the light and to immobilize the hand-held wand in relation to the tooth undergoing restoration, without at the same time risking direct contact with and possible marring of the material to be photo-cured. A holder releasably supports the wand until use is required, the holder having a recess for receiving the shielded tip of the wand to protect the patient and others from the dazzling and discomforting effects of misdirected high-intensity light.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method to assist in identification of removable dental prosthesis or appliances which have an area of acrylic, vinyl or other plastic type material in which the carrier on which identifying information such as: name, Social Security number, address, telephone number or any combination thereof is imprinted can be embedded in and covered with a clear material of the same type or compatible with the original material of the dental prosthesis.

Abstract: In a subcutaneous body entry communication device, the device including a first and second communication pathway means for operably interconnecting an external device to an internal body location. The first communication pathway means being implanted in an animal's tooth; the second communication pathway means being implanted in the animal's jaw and being operably connected between the first communication pathway means and the internal body location.The method for implanting the first communication pathway device involving excavating an aperture in the tooth; the means for implanting the second communication pathway device involving surgical procedures. The body entry communication device being configurable as an electrical, a light or a fluid conductor.

Abstract: The method of etching a porcelain dental appliance insitu including the steps of contacting the porcelain with a buffered solution containing trace amounts of hydrogen fluoride and removing the solution after sufficient time has elapsed to etch the porcelain. Preferred solutions are buffered at a pH from about 2.0 to about 6.0 and most preferably from about 3.5 to about 4.5. Contact time of the solution with porcelain ranges from about five minutes to from about five to about thirty minutes or longer.The solution preferably contains an alkali metal fluoride dissolved in a weak acid. In a preferred embodiment, the solution contains about one to about three parts by weight of sodium fluoride dissolved in about 50 parts to about 150 parts by weight of dilute weak acid. The weak acid has a molarity of from about 0.05 molar to about 0.5 molar. The weak acid solution is buffered, if necessary, and has a pH of from about 2.0 to about 6.0 and preferably from about 3.5 to about 4.

Abstract: There is described a method for repairing dental prosthesis which comprises fastening the corresponding break surfaces of the prosthesis to one another by means of a non-toxic fast-setting adhesive having an affinity for the material the prosthesis is made of, and then forming on the lingual surface of said prosthesis facing said break surface fastened to one another, a butt-strip from polyacrylic resin having some width, said strip being fastened to the lingual surface on either side of said break surfaces.

Abstract: A stand for instruments of metal for use in the field of medicine, particularly odontology, comprising a body composed of a large number of sheets of a liquid impregnatable paper material. The sheets are arranged vertically close together so that the instruments are insertable by their operating ends between the sheets to be retained there during the sterilizing process and are thus stored easily accessible for subsequent clinical work. The sheets of paper are impregnated with a corrosion inhibitor to protect the instruments at least during a sterilizing process.

Abstract: A device adapted to be placed in the human mouth for treating among other things temporomandibular joint dysfunctions comprising an elongated flexible plastic body having occlusal portions at the extremities thereof, the occlusal portions being interconnected at their forward or anterior ends by a labial portion. The occlusal portions each are provided with an enlarged fluid-containing passage. The passages in the occlusal portions are interconnected by a restricted passage which transverses the labial portion of the body. The occlusal portions form enlarged cells which are adapted to be positioned between the posterior teeth on each side of the mouth, and constitute occlusal pressure responsive means for hydrostatically compensating for any differences in pressure resulting from occlusal forces applied to each of the cells by the posterior teeth of the mouth. As a result, the occlusal forces which would normally be applied to the teeth are equalized and are axially oriented.

Abstract: A flexible plastic strip having oppositely disposed faces, one of said faces being smooth and the other defining a smooth middle portion and opposite end portions diagonally coated with an abrasive. The width of the finishing strip is made approximately the same as an average distance from gum line contact point of two adjacent teeth, that is about 7 millimeters. The diagonal coatings make it possible to reduce and smooth to tooth level repairs of any size without ridging the repairs.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method to assist in the identification of a living body which comprises selecting a carrier, transcribing information as to the identity of the body on the carrier, and fixing the carrier to a hard mineralized portion of the body. The structure includes a miniaturized carrier of relatively inert material and having identifying intelligence thereon, wherein the carrier is adapted to be fixed or otherwise embedded on hard mineralized tissue of the body.