Henry Nahoum, DDS, the inventor of thermoplastic appliances, delivered a lecture on January 31st to the students in the Advanced Dental Education Program’s Practice Management Course. His first paper on the subject was published in 1965. The 104-year-old doctor gave an incredible lecture on thermoplastic appliances and the physics behind how he felt they would be best used. Dr. Nahoum's passion for the subject is evident, even after sixty-five years.
During his lecture, he discussed the first patients who received the appliances and how he came up with the invention. He shared that his neighbor owned a packaging plant that used a vacuum-form machine to create packaging for razors. Dr. Nahoum was allowed to try out one of the machines the plant was not using. After some trial and error, Dr. Nahoum discovered he could start manipulating the teeth by creating a fitted form from a mold of his patients' teeth. His first step was to cut out the teeth that needed adjustment. He would then place them back into the mold with a bit of wax and adjust the tooth 1 mm closer to an ideal location. Although it took some time to perfect, he successfully moved the teeth into better alignment with his invention.
Beyond his continuing contributions to the thermoplastic appliance industry, Dr. Nahoum has been published on many dental subjects, including dental caries, malformations, and dental appliances.
It was an honor to host Dr. Nahoum and have him lecture to our graduate students. The staff and School cannot thank him enough for sharing his knowledge and expertise with the LLU School of Dentistry community.