Birdsall Holly Broadbent Sr. (27 September 1894 – 23 December 1977) was an American

orthodontist Orthodontics is a dentistry specialty that addresses the diagnosis, prevention, management, and correction of mal-positioned teeth and jaws, and misaligned bite patterns. It may also address the modification of facial growth, known as dentofacial ...

who is credited with developing and introducing the technique of cephalometric roentgenography to orthodontics. He also devised the cephalometer, which accurately positions a patient's head with reference to the x-ray source.

Life

Broadbent was born in Lockport,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. His parents were James and Mabel Holly Broadbent. He went to Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine and obtained his dental degree in 1919. He then attended the orthodontic program in the same institution and obtained his master's degree in 1922. He eventually became the Director of Bolton Fund of Western Reserve in 1929. During the 1933

World Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Broadbent displayed the results of his study of facial development which he took from a series of cephalometric records that he took from his patients. In 1948 he became professor in dental facial anatomy at Western Reserve University. Broadbent married Bernice Mathews in 1921 and had four children, including a son, Holly Broadbent Jr. Broadbent Sr. died in

Kirtland, Ohio Kirtland is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 6,937 at the 2020 census. Kirtland is known for being the early headquarters of the Latter Day Saint movement from 1831 to 1837 and is the site of the movement's first t ...

at the age of 83 and his ashes were buried in a cemetery in

Brooklyn Heights Brooklyn Heights is a residential neighborhood within the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Old Fulton Street near the Brooklyn Bridge on the north, Cadman Plaza West on the east, Atlantic Avenue on the south, an ...

Orthodontics

Broadbent has been credited with developing the cephalometer along with Dr. Wingate Todd during 1920s. The Cephalometer held a patient's head steady during an x-ray. They published a paper in 1931 called ''A new X-ray Technique and Its Application to Orthodontia'' which introduced a technique. This longitudinal study which consisted of cephalometric measurements had 3500 school children aging from birth to adulthood. He also established a reference point on the skull called Bolton Point.

Award and recognitions

* Honorary Degree from

Dublin University The University of Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Átha Cliath), corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin, is a university located in Dublin, Ireland. It is the degree-awarding body for Trinity College Dubl ...

, 1960 * Honorary fellow in Dental Surgery at

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The ...

, 1966 * Honorary Doctor of Science from

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Reser ...

, 1967 *

Silver Beaver Award The Silver Beaver Award is the council-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. Upon nomination by their local Scout council and with the approval of the National Court of Honor, recipients of this award are registered adu ...

, 1952 * Albert H. Ketcham Award, 1944 * Honorary President of Twelfth International Dental Congress, 1957

References

American dentists Case Western Reserve University alumni Case Western Reserve University faculty Orthodontists 1894 births 1977 deaths 20th-century dentists {{US-med-bio-stub