Thread by @POH_Smiles

Heartening to know that today there are gobs & scads of young #Dentist's who want to learn more about who precisely WAS "C.C. Bass, M.D", and what did he have to say about #PreventiveDentistry?

For the last few decades or so, just about any young #Dentist, when they first learn the real story of who "C. C. Bass, M.D." is, and what he actually did, are puzzled.

A couple of channels results from their #DentalSkool teaching, and thus their thinking.

First channel, or school of thought, is along the lines of:

"Who?"

Second channel is along the lines of:

"Charters, Stillman and Bass?" [Kid gets a B+]

Third channel is along the lines of:

"Bass? ... ... He did something with oral hygiene? Well, I studied to be a #Dentist, not an RDH, thank you very much.""

Fourth channel is along the lines of:

"If this Bass dude was so special, big shot important, why wasn't he taught in #DentalSkool?"

Fifth channel is along the lines of:

"WOW! This Bass dude's information is so different, so special, big shot important, why wasn't he taught to me in #DentalSkool?"

The author of the Bass book, Dr Wayne Lott, from the book.
-|-
"Dr. Wayne Lott practiced dentistry 31 years in Jacksonville, Arkansas. He was president of the Society for the Preservation of Oral Health and has been a member of the American Dental Association, ..."

" ... Arkansas Dental Association, and Delta Sigma Delta dental fraternity. He graduated dental school at Loyola of the South in 1950. He served two years as a Marine Corps dentist in the Korean War and retired as a commander in the Naval Reserves."

#4 channel:

"So, how does this Lott guy know enough about Dr Bass <<[sarcastic voice] to write a whole book?"

It is not a big book. 112 pages front to back. A lazy afternoon read. Even with a good ghost writer, Dr Lott was wise enough to know his field was #Dentistry, not #History. It is one man's recollection of the time he spent on Earth with Dr Bass. Not history.

From the About This Book section:

"Hampered by stubbornness — his own as well as the dental profession’s — he [Dr Bass] did not achieve his goal of redefining dentistry. But he did influence thousands of dentists to focus on prevention rather than restoration, ..."

" ... and many of his ideas, such as the importance of flossing, are now considered mainstream."

🤬

"After his death The Journal of the American Dental Association, which had repeatedly rejected his writings, called him the father of preventive dentistry."

Organized #Dentistry did that.

However, one group of #PreventiveDentists did better.
One. Group. Of. Dentists.

Dr Bass was ninety one years old in 1967.

To put a fine point on this.

In the late 1950's, early 1960's, Dr Bass' ideas began to break through to that generation of #Dentists & #Cardiologists. The grape vine carried the message, more learned then a small group of 13 men (Ladies, it was Eisenhower time, beg pardon) got together to study & learn.

This was so new, & such an immense advance in the #ScienceAndArt of #Dentistry, they had to sure. A couple of years working, observing & recording, & they had data to share. Each & every #Dentist in that group saw an immediate improvement in the oral health of their patients.

That group saw this as a sea change in the field or oral health. There is a scene in Dr Lott's book, set in one of the first meetings of this group of #PreventiveDentists. Dr Lott describes it as having the atmosphere of an old fashioned tent revival meeting.

Dr Bass died in 1975, after that, organized #Dentistry said he was the father of #PreventiveDentistry. Today, 65 years after Dr Bass went to his reward, how many specialties are there in #American #Dentistry?
❓
Twelve.
ncrdscb.ada.org/en/dental-spec…

Seven of twelve all have the string "prevent" in their description. A majority of the specialties of #Dentistry all make the claim of 'doing #Prevention'. Like a root canal (Endodontics), or a gum grafting (Periodontics), they do #prevention!

It is past time to add one more specialty to American #Dentistry. Make it a Lucky 13. In all these years, why is there no specialty recognized as "Preventive Dentistry"?

Last couple of years, the term 'integration of Dentistry & Medicine', or the like, has been part of the #zahnzeit. Demolish the silos. Break down the wall between the practice of #Dentistry & #Medicine. that sort of buzz.
Good. Start here. health.harvard.edu/blog/first-do-…

#4 channel - Dr Lott served as a #Dental amanuensis for Dr Bass for five years or so. It wasn't, as they say around Dr Lott's parts, but a a hop, skip & a jump from his home in Arkansas to Tulane university & Dr Bass.

Dr Bass, a #Physician, got Dr Lott, a #Dentist, to help make the knowledge more translatable to organized #Dentistry. In gratitude for the assistance, of the 3 Green Books Dr Bass had bound & published of his work, one went to his family, one to a University & one went to Dr Lott

Personal, heart warming sidebar: Wayne Lott was a compact man, wiry & tough, Ozark bred, during the Depression. He had a soft, high pitched voice with the hills of Arkansas lilting through it.

If a new pt called the office, & Dr Lott happened to answer, the caller would invariably & without fail say:

"Hello, ma'am, I would like to make an appt with Dr Lott."

With a twinkle in his eyes, he would just as invariably & without fail, say:

"Certainly, & thank you. Can you hold, please?"

If someone happened to intimate that the Arkansas #Razorbacks were perhaps not the best team in college football around him, his voice would shoot up to maybe high A, Audrey Luna's high range, and as he put it, he would "Correct their compass".

Usually, that 'someone' was POH founder Dr Bob Jones, whose wife was an alumna of #Oklahoma University.

Arkansas & Oklahoma being neighboring states, one could say there was a bit of a fun between Dr Jones & Dr Lott.

Dr Lott, having been set off one time at a meeting:

"Isn't the nickname of that Oklahoma football team of y'alls the Sooners? Weren't they the ones who raced across the border of the territory during the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889, before the official starting time? ..."

" ... Why in the world would y'all name your team after cheaters?!"

To which, "B" Jones would reply:

"You know how you can prove the toothbrush was invented in Arkansas? ..."

" ... Because if it had been invented anywhere else, they would have called it a teethbrush."