It would be wrong to say that it is a great time to have a toothache. After all, there is never a great time for that. But compared to the anesthetic methods used in the past, our dentist, Dr. James Kinsel can make sure that your visit is as easy and painless as possible. But what did dentists do in the past?

In ancient Babylonia, healthcare professionals used a mixture of the seeds of a poisonous plant called henbane and gum mastic to ease the pain of a cavity. In India, around 1000 BC, the prescription was to get drunk on wine. This may also have resulted in patients coming back the next day for a hangover cure! In the 1500’s a German scientist came up with ether, and Ambroise Pare in France proposed curbing pain by compressing nerves.

History tells us that nitrous oxide was first proposed to relax patients in 1779 by Humphry Davy. Hollow needles were created in 1853, but Novocain would not make its appearance until 1904. For a while cocaine, opium, laudanum and alcohol were common remedies for dental pain.

Today, pain management has come a long way, and if you have a problem with your teeth, your dentist can take care of it without you feeling any pain at all. You don’t have to live with a toothache. If you live in the Clearlake, California area, call phone 707-994-9414 to make an appointment at Clear Lake Dental & Associates.