American Journal of ORTHODONTICS and DENTOFACIAL ORTHOPEDICS

Founded in 1915--Seventy-five years Volume 98 Number 1 July 1990 of continuous publication

Copyright © 1990 by Mosby-Year Book, Inc.

SPECIAL ARTICLES

The JOURNAL celebrates its diamond A remarkable record of achievement

B. F. Dewel, DDS Evanston, Ill.

anniversary:

W i t h understandable pride, the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTICS AND DENTOFACIAL OR- THOPEDICS is celebrating its Diamond Anniversary. It was known originally as the INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTIA, and few professional publications have had such an exceptional record of continuous monthly publication. Its first issue was in January 1915, and it survived two devastating world wars, the Great Depression of the 1930s, and several smaller wars and depressions during its first 75 years.

The JOORNAL"s principal editorial policies were es- tablished in its first issue when Martin Dewey, in his first editorial, wrote that the "purpose of the INTER- NATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTIA will be to serve humanity. ''t Equally important purposes were that the JOURNAL "will be conducted for the benefit of ortho- dontia as a science and a specialty," that it will "en- deavor to serve society by arousing interest in this much needed and fascinating branch of science," and that it will "publish articles that will be of interest to the entire orthodontic fraternity. ''2

In the best of editorial traditions the JOURNAL has routinely discussed current issues of importance to the public and to the specialty. 3 In another editorial, Dewey asks, "What are the moral and legal obligations as- sumed by one who advertises to the public by word or sign that he is an orthodontist? ''4 The question was not about advertising but about the qualifications of the orthodontist. In his editorial, Dewey expressed the

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problem in this manner: "At the present time we have no way of determining when a person possesses the required skill and training necessary to make him an orthodontist." It still is of concern for all specialties and professions.

The question was to take increased importance in the years to come. In 1915 there were no university graduate orthodontic programs--just preceptorships and a few short private proprietary courses, but there was no way of officially recognizing the qualifications of either the preceptor or the private school. It would be nearly 10 years before a limited number Of univer- sities would start their graduate orthodontic programs and 15 years before the American Board of Orthodon- tics would be able to start its certification program. During the intervening years, the JOURNAL fulfilled its responsibilities by publishing many pro and con articles and editorials regarding the proper course for the spe- cialty to follow.

Although the concept of a certifying specialty board was not popular when the American Board of Ortho- dontics was founded in 1929, the JOURNAL supported it both before and after its adoption by the American Society of Orthodontists. 5 The JOURNAL also opposed prospective specialty practice laws in California, Ari- zona, and New York because they "would not in any way benefit the public and the patients, nor do we think it would help the professions." Conversely, "an Amer- ican Board of Orthodontics would render a valuable service to the public by examining and granting certif- icates to successful candidates," and it would also have a "much better influence upon improvement in ortho-

2 D e w e l

dontia as a special branch of dentistry than any legis- lation that could be passed by a state. ''~

The JOURNAL was having its own problems during those early days because the specialty remained small, and publishable articles continued to be scarce. A low point was hit in the September 1917 issue, but Martin Dewey came to the rescue by writing three clinical articles and 15 pages of contemporary editorials to meet the required 60 pages of text each month. It was during this period that Dr. Dewey arranged a mutually advan- tageous union between the JOURNAL and the American Society of Orthodontists while also serving as chairman of the Department of Orthodontics at the University of Iowa.

Part of the solution for adequate material was pub- lication of a series of fascinating articles that formed the basis for Weinberger's extensive history of ortho- dontics. 7 It got its start in an "Introduction" in the Sep- tember 1915 issue of the JOURNAL, and it continued at intervals until the August 1922 issue. The two-volume text would not be published until 1926, but prepubli- cation of much of it in the JOURNAL increased interest and even pride in this newly developing dental specialty. Included were illustrations of the bandlike fixed appli- ances that originated in angient Egypt, Greece, and Italy. Other illustrations showthe earliest attempts to fabricate the fixed and removable appliances that pre- ceded those of the 1800s.

Today the JOURNAL'S year consists of two six-issue volumes of approximately 540 pages each for a total of just short of 1,100 pages each year. Few textbooks reach that many pages, but they are more expensive and their subject matter is usually more limited in nature and extent. JOURNAL policy is to achieve an acceptable balance between research and practice, but that often is difficult to do because of an ever-constant scarcity of clinical manuscripts. As with advanced university courses, JOURNAL content covers a wide variety of sub- jects, all generously illustrated, with monthly issues that average more individual photographs, tracings, and tables than the usual 80-slide audio-visual sequence. JOURNAL circulation now totals more than 15,800 sub- scribers, 4,600 of whom are in other countries.

Of equal interest is that January 1915 also marks the date of the first monthly issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association, known originally as the Journal of the National Dental Association, but it had been preceded by a quarterly for 4 years. The AMER- ICAN JOURNAL OF ORTttODONTICS had also been pre- ceded by a quarterly, the American Orthodontist. It had been sponsored by the first Angle Society, and Martin Dewey had also been its first editor. It was published somewhat irregularly from June 1907 to October 1912.

Am. J. Orthod. Dentofac. Orthop. July 1990

Although it is known today as the AMERICAN JOUR- NAL OF ORTHODONTICS AND DENTOFACIAL ORTHOPE- DICS, its original title was the INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTIA. At various stages during its 75 years, it has been known as the INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTIA, ORAL SURGERY AND RADIOGRAI~HY; the INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTIA AND DENTISTRY FOR CHILDREN; the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTItODONTICS AND ORAL SURGERY; and from 1947 to 1986 as the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTICS. As editor-in-chief during most of these title changes, Dr. Pollock provided continuity in the orthodontic char- acter of the JOURNAL.

One of the JOURNAL'S midcentury problems was the proper term to use when referring to the special ty-- orthodontia or orthodontics. Both terms were used by various authors, and sometimes they got a bit testy if a change was made from the one used since the early 1900s. Dr. Pollock's solution was to assign the problem to the chairman of both the Association's nomenclature committee and the JOURNAL'S publication board, s The final decision went to orthodontics since, among other things, the -ia suffix indicates a condition (as in pneu- monia and alopecia) while the -ics ending indicates that a science is meant (as in physics and mathematics, and even ethics). Not long after, other dental specialties followed orthodontics' lead: endodontia, pedodontia, and prosthodontia became endodomics, pedodontics, and prosthetics. In medicine, orthopaedia had already become orthopedics, as in the title of our JOURNAL.

Another midcentury matter of concern for all pu b- lications was the purpose and objectives in the selection of material for publication. Part of the solution was in this response in the December 1970 JOURNAL: "It has been said that the course of events in the development of a specialty can be traced more accurately through the pages of its periodicals than through those of its textbooks. New ideas, new concepts, and new findings almost invariably first see the light of day in scientific journals. Some concepts are good, some are mediocre, and some live only long enough to be disproved. Strangely, a few good ones are forgotten or fail to get accepted and have to be 'rediscovered' by a later gen- eration. Those that prove good ultimately find their way into textbooks but even then they remain under constant scrutiny in the ever-continuing search for truth. ''9

Selective extraction in orthodontic treatment has been a major problem throughout orthodontic, history, and the JOURNAL has published many pertinent articles in an attempt to resolve the issue. The principal mid- century attempt was an AAO extraction panel discus- sion that was published in its entirety in the August 1944 JOURNAL. I° The moderator was George W. Hahn,

Volume 98 Number 1

Special article 3

and the speakers were Charles H. Tweed and George W. Grieve defending extraction and Allan G. Brodie and Milo Hellman opposing extraction. H No holds were barred, the exchange was emphatic and occasionally vehement, and the discussion lasted throughout the morning and the noon hour. Serial extraction was not a part of the 1944 panel, for it would not appear in American journals for another 10 years in 1954--and it would have its own problems with excessive appli- cation. J2

The extraction problem still haunted orthodontics 20 years after that 1944 discussion) 3 Emphasizing the extent of the continuing controversy, Editor Pollock republished in 1964 a much earlier and similar extrac- tion panel discussion that had first appeared in 1911 in the Transactions of the National Dental Association. The various arguments were still valid, and the 1911 speakers--Calvin Case, Martin Dewey, and Matthew H. Cryer--were just as competent and respected as those in 1944. Contemporary observations were in an introduction by Dr. Pollock t4 and a commentary by B. F. Dewel. j5

The JOURNAL also kept its readers informed regu- larly on the problems caused both before and after the "Baby Boom" that followed the end of World War II. I6 There were not enough orthodontists at the height of the Baby Boom, and not enough patients 30 years later when the Baby Boom generation failed to produce as many children as their parents had done. Meanwhile, the schools had expanded their graduate programs to provide more orthodontists than was necessary for the unanticipated "Birth Dearth" generation.

Midcentury orthodontists had been greatly con- cerned over both the need for more orthodontists and the lack of sufficient graduate programs, even before the Baby Boom. No one wanted to lower educational standards; yet everyone saw the need for more ortho- dontists. The solution was an AAO rigidly supervised 3-year preceptorship training program in which the qualifications of the preceptor were as thoroughly examined as those of the preceptee. It was a time- consuming assignment that George Hahn accepted, and it required constant supervision over the eight AAO constituent society examining committees.17 An accom- panying editorial called it "an educational experiment of major proportions for a professional society" and "one of the finest eras in the history of the American Association of Orthodontists."

Population totals tell most of the story. The post- World War II Baby Boom started in 1946, not surpris- ingly just a year after several million men got back from military service. It hit a peak in 1957 when their chil- dren approached their teens. Between 1954 and 1957

more than 4 million babies were born each year. Ten years later the average was down to 3V2 million.

In 1957 there were 1,782 qualified orthodontists in the American Association of Orthodontists. By 1987 there were 10,205 AAO members, of whom 266 had received their orthodontic education in the Associa- tion's preceptorship program. They have since proved their competence before the American Board of Ortho- dontics, in articles in the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTICS, and at the highest administration levels of the American Association of Orthodontists. Dr. Hahn would have been gratified.

The JOURNAL was scarcely 10 years old when it was able to fulfill one of its international responsibilities by publicizing the First International Orthodontic Con- gress, which was held in New York in 1926Y It was the first international meeting held by a dental specialty. The JOURNAL retained its original title of "INTERNA- TIONAL" JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTICS until 1947, and it again provided publicity for the Second International Congress in London in 193 I.~9 It also was a real success despite the world-wide Great Depression of the 1930s.

By the time of London's Third International Ortho- dontic Congress in 1973, the JOURNAL'S title was the "AMERICAN" JOURNAL Oi ORTHODONTICS, but by then the JOURNAL had more man 3,000 foreign subscribers who joined Americans in deserving generous Congress publicity? ° As a result, all three meetings were well attended, and each produced individual books of Con- gress research and clinical material--two books of the third Congress.

During its 75 years, the JOURNAL has had only five editors: Martin Dewey, 16 years; H. C. Pollock, 37 years; B. F. Dewel, I0 years; Wayne Watson, 7 years; and T. M. Graber, current editor since 1985. They have been in agreement in virtually all issues that orthodon- tics has bad to face. For example, they all would ap- prove Dr. Graber's comment that "neither government control nor third-party involvement is likely to raise the standard of our specialty. Indeed, they may introduce a number of new problems we have not had thus far, problems already apparent in monolithic bureaucracies everywhere. ''2j

They also would be in agreement with Dr. Watson's conclusion that "it is no longer sufficient to rely on information you gathered during your formal education. The half-life of medical information 'is now about 5 years. Without continuous effort to expand your knowl- edge, it becomes obsolete in about I0 years. ''22

Changes in JOURNAL advertising over the years show extensive progress in orthodontic appliances, treatment procedures, and office equipment. No longer seen are advertisements of strange laboratory-designed

4 Dewel Am. J. Orthod. Dentofac. Orthop. July 1990

removable appliances or plaster casts with upper labial and lower lingual archwires that by today ' s standards could make little improvement in the al ignment of mal- posed teeth or in the treatment of skeletal problems. In the 1920s, German si lver was widely used for ortho- dontic appliances, but gold-plat inum was preferred when anterior teeth were banded. Steel arrived in the 1930s for bands, brackets, and arch wires, but they were not as well designed as today ' s appliances.

As with all publications, the JOURNAL has always maintained strict advertising s tandards- - for tunate ly , under the effective supervision of Earl E. Shepard, the JOURNAL'S business editor since 1953. The JOURNAL has also been just as fortunate in having had J. A. Salzmann as its editor of reviews and abstracts from 1938 to 1980, succeeded first by Dr. Graber and cur- rently by Alex Jacobson.

Perhaps the most apparent change in the JOURNAL'S appearance during Wayne Watson 's tenure as JOURNAL editor was the increase in the size of the JOURNAL'S pages to 8 X 11 inches over the smaller page that had long been the standard for professional journals. Dr. Watson also required an author 's photograph and a syn- opsis for each article. A masthead change was the add- ing of a subtitle, "A Journal of Dentofacial Orthope- dics ," to the JOURNAL'S name, as had first been rec- ommended in a September 1976 JOURNAL editorial. 23

As current editor, Dr. Graber took the final step by changing the JOURNAL'S name permanently to the AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHODONTICS AND DENTO- FACIAL ORTHOPEDICS, for it more accurately describes the entire area of orthodontic responsibili ty. He also deserves credit for arranging a generous color illustra- tion policy with the JOURNAL'S publishers and increas- ing the annual number of JOURNAL pages from 1080 to more than 1200. Perhaps his major accomplishment has been in establishing French and Italian editions of the JOURNAL.

The JOURNAL is not alone in celebrating an anni- versary following 75 years of continuous monthly pub- lication; the American Association of Orthodontists is also celebrating a b i r t h d a y - - i t s ninetieth since its founding in 1900. It also is 60 years since the American Board o f Orthodontics granted its first certificte of com- petence in 1930, and the Charles R. Baker Reference Library claims 65 years since its founding in 1925. But this is the JOURNAL'S year for celebrating, for few spe- cialty pub l i ca t ions - -med ica l or d e n t a l - - c a n claim such a remarkable publication record.

REFERENCES 1. Dewey M. The Journal's endeavor. It~r J ORTHOD 1915;1:40. 2. Dewey M. The editorial policy of the Journal. INt" J ORmOO

1915;1:39. 3. Dewel BF. The Journal celebrates its diamond anniversary: early

days early doubts, ultimate success. AM J ORTHOD DENTOFAC ORrHOP 1990;97:1-2.

4. Dewey M. Who is an "orthodontist"? l,vr J OR'I'nOD 1915;1: 224-5.

5. Dewel BF. The American Board of Orthodontics: past, present, and future. AM J ORTHOD 1962;48:568-78.

6. Dewey M. Why not an American Board of Orthodontia? INT J OR'mOP 1929;15:391-5.

7. Weinberger BW. The history of orthodontia. IN'r J ORTHOD 1915;1:447-58.

8. Dewel BF. Orthodontia or orthodontics. AM J ORTHOD 1958; 44:869-72.

9. Dewel BF. Orthodontic decades in retrospect and prospect. AM J OR'roOD 1970;58:617-8.

10. Pollock HC. The panel issue. AM J OR'rHOD ORAL SURG 1944;30:461.

11. Hahn GW, Tweed CH, Hellman M, Grieve GW, Brodie AG. Extraction panel. AM J ORTHOD ORAL SURG 1944;30:401-60.

12. Dewel BF. Serial extraction: indications, objectives, and treat- ment procedures. AM J ORTHOD 1954;40:906-26.

13. Case CS, Dewey M, Cryer MH. The question of extraction in orthodontia. AM J OR'rHOD 1964;50:658-91,751-68,843-51,900- 12.

14. Pollock HC. The extraction debate of 1911 by Case, Dewey, and Cryer: introduction. AM J ORTHOD 1964;50:656-7.

15. Dewel BE The Case-Dewey-Cryer extraction debate: a com- mentary. AM J ORalaOD 1964;50:862-5.

16. Dewel BF. On baby booms and birth dearths. AM J ORTrtOD 1978;64:309-10.

17. Hahn GW. The story of the AAO-supervised preceptorship pro- gram. AM J ORTHOD 1971;60:189-98.

18. Mosby CV. The first international orthodontic congress. INT J ORrHOD 1926;12:593-4.

19. Waugh LM. Report of the second international orthodontic con- gress, lrcr J ORTHOD 1931;17:1172-6.

20. Dewel BF. The third international orthodontic congress: a major accomplishment. AM J ORTHOD 1974;65:306-12.

21. Graber TM. An orthodontic perspective after 75 years. AM J ORTHOD 1976;69:572-83.

22. Watson WG. Reflections, trends, and challenges. AM J OR'mOP 1985;88:77-9.

23. Dewel BF. Orthodontosie, orthodontics, or dentofacial ortho- pedics. AM J ORTHOD 1976;70:328.

Reprint requests to: Dr. B. F. Dewel 2007 Bennett Ave. Evanston, IL 60201