Who Is the Father of Orthodontics? What aboutthe Mother?

The concept of teeth care began almost 2500 years ago. At one point during its revolution, archeologists found that people were using wine to disinfect their teeth and kill bacteria. The method worked, but teeth problems were more than a mere glass of wine. 

The father of orthodontics

Many dentists believe the idea of straightening teeth was originally from France. According to sources, it was invented by Pierre Fauchard, born in 1679. Fauchard was an intelligent dentist, and he is alleged to be the first person to write about orthodontics in his book The Dentist’s Doctor.

On the other side of the world, in the USA, Americans claim orthodontics was invented on their land by Edward Hartley Angle, born in 1855. The fierce reputation, dedication, and education made him become one of the greatest icons in medicine. To date, dental care is an essential part of life, with men visiting dental facilities more than ladies. 

 According to statistics, folks in need orthodontists are still 62% likely to be men. This shows that despite dentistry being for all, more men suffer from teeth problems, unlike ladies.

Thanks to technology, today, women are deeply sinking into tough careers.Sometimes women find their way into dentistry through social media marketing, empowerment programs, and pure dedication.  

Modern Orthodontics 

Modern Orthodontics began taking shape in the late 19th century in the arms of Angle. After he finished his high school education, Angle traveled to Bradford County, where he set up his fast orthodontics facility.  

While in Bradford County in a small town known as Towanda, the young dentist explicitly expressed his interest in dental mechanics. According to one of the dentists who saw Angle’s career bloom to life, Dr. David Shepard, he was determined to align misaligned teeth for proper bites and beauty. 

Seeing that dentists was not a gold mine as at that time, the ambitious Angele tried farming which set him on a voyage across the country. After a few years of living under the radar in Montana, as a sheep farmer, the physically abled Angele tried all sorts of lifestyles, but it seems his calling was in orthodontics. Sources stated that the great blizzard of 1882 wiped out his entire herd, which forced him back to Towanda and later to Minnesota.  

His great thinking and tinkering with teeth mechanics made him a hot cake in the understaffed dental community. Angele was welcomed at the Minnesota Hospital College in Minneapolis as a histology professor. His position was later elevated to a professor of orthodontia when Minnesota Hospital College merged into the University of Minnesota.

In orthodontics, women, too, made a great contribution. The first woman in dentistry was Dr. Lucy Hobbs Taylor. 

She broke the traditional barrier that only men were to follow daring careers such as orthodontics. Today, many ladies are inspired to join the medicine community by her unwavering courage and the need to solve problems. Besides, orthodontics has evolved greatly to fit modern society.