THIRD DENTITIONS FATAL. 129 



"With regard to the constitutional effects of this 

 abnormal dentition, Prof. Harris, who relates two 

 cases as having occurred under his own observation, 

 says : 'It seems that the efforts made by nature for the 

 production of a third complete set of teeth are usually 

 so great that they exhaust the remaining energies of 

 the system, for occurrences of this kind are generally 

 soon followed by death.' " 



RETENTION OF DECIDUOUS TEETH. Miss A. B., 

 aged twenty years, has never shed her deciduous 

 second molars. They are sound and healthy, except 

 one. The first bicuspids have been erupted; the 

 second have not. Would it be proper to extract the 

 temporary teeth ? M. A. 



In answer to M. A., in the November, 1881, num- 

 ber of the Dental Cosmos, I would reply that from 

 my experience it would be poor practice to extract 

 healthy deciduous molars at that age, merely because 

 they were deciduous, and when nothing else indicated 

 such treatment. I have met with many such cases. 

 Sometimes only one or two of the molars are retained ; 

 at other times three or four. I know of two sisters, 

 over forty years of age, who have each their four 

 deciduous second molars, and every one perfectly 

 healthy. Stormont. 



