Charles Stent (1807–1885) was a 19th-century English dentist notable for his advances in the field of

denture Dentures (also known as false teeth) are prosthetic devices constructed to replace missing teeth, and are supported by the surrounding soft and hard tissues of the oral cavity. Conventional dentures are removable (removable partial denture or ...

making. In 1847, English dentist Edwin Truman (1819-1905) introduced

gutta-percha Gutta-percha is a tree of the genus ''Palaquium'' in the family Sapotaceae. The name also refers to the rigid, naturally biologically inert, resilient, electrically nonconductive, thermoplastic latex derived from the tree, particularly from ' ...

as a material for making dental impressions; however, this was unsatisfactory for several reasons, including its tendency to distort upon removal from the patient's mouth, and to shrink upon cooling. In 1856, Stent added several other materials to the gutta-percha, notably stearine, which markedly improved the plasticity of the material as well as its stability. He also added

talc Talc, or talcum, is a Clay minerals, clay mineral, composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. Talc in powdered form, often combined with corn starch, is used as baby powder. This mineral is used as a thi ...

as an inert filler to give more body to the material, and red colouring. The medical device called a

stent In medicine, a stent is a metal or plastic tube inserted into the lumen of an anatomic vessel or duct to keep the passageway open, and stenting is the placement of a stent. A wide variety of stents are used for different purposes, from expandab ...

is thought to derive its name from him. Charles Thomas Stent was born at

Royal Crescent, Brighton Royal Crescent is a crescent-shaped terrace of houses on the seafront in Brighton, part of the English city of Brighton and Hove. Built in the late 18th and early 19th century as a speculative development on the open cliffs east of Brighton by ...

, on 17 October 1807. He was the 6th son of William and Hannah (née Jenkin) Stent. He had 2 sons, Charles Robert and Howard and a daughter, Fanny. Later in life, Charles Robert added his mother's maiden name of Osborn, to his. Charles Thomas and his wife Caroline are buried in Brompton Cemetery, London.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stent English dentists 1807 births 1885 deaths Burials at Bromley Cemetery 19th-century dentists