Volodymyr Babii.Toothache.Lviv, 1932

“The patient must be a “god” to the doctor. That is what they teach at the medical clinic.”

Dr. med. Volodymyr Babii, dental surgeon in Lviv. Toothache.

Lviv, 1932. — 38 pp. — Printed by the “D. P.” Printing House in the “Grafia” building, Lviv, 5 Tycha Street. Publisher not stated on the title page.

Later half-cloth binding: spine and corners in light blue cloth, sides pasted with black textured paper. Spine cloth with small ink spots and faded stains, corners slightly worn; black paper with surface scuffs. The pamphlet is sewn through with thread near the spine, with reddish stains near the punctures. Paper with even yellowing, occasional spots on the edges; top corner of pp. 37–38 dog-eared, with a small stain. The number “400” is written in blue at the top of the title page, with an ink stain on the left margin of the title page. Condition: good.

The book has historical and cultural value and is of collector’s interest.

INFORMATION

“Even abroad I have encountered nothing printed that comprehensively covers the scope of dentistry,” the author writes in the preface, and sets out to fill this gap. The book is dedicated to patients: it is recommended for anyone with healthy teeth to read before beginning treatment. Fourteen short chapters cover deciduous and permanent teeth, anatomy, and caries, leading through toothache, gum inflammation, treatment, and filling to X-rays, root “resection,” and tooth “replantation.”

The most vivid aspects of the book are those that reveal their time. One chapter is devoted to bodily ailments “arising from decayed teeth,” in the spirit of the popular theory of the time, which linked diseases throughout the body to dental infections. The chapter “The Value of a Tooth” explains why a single surviving tooth can be priceless, while the chapter on the difference between doctors and “so-called dental technicians” reflects the contemporary dispute between the two professions. The latter, on “overstudying” teeth, argues that neither slots nor drills have any effect on toothache, and concludes with the advice to visit for check-ups twice a year: “Let us follow the example of cultured people!”

The author identified himself on the title page as a doctor of medicine and dental surgeon in Lviv, so the pamphlet served both as a guide and as the word of a practitioner to his patients. No publisher is stated, only the printing house on 5 Tycha Street. Language — interwar Galician, with its own medical terminology: “filling,” “caries,” “gum inflammation,” “infections.” Popular medical booklets of that time circulated among patients and were read until they fell apart, so they are rarely found.