Orthodontist And Inventor Dr. David R. Hoffman Dies
Times Picayune  03-12-1996

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Dr. David R. Hoffman, an orthodontist who helped develop a device to reduce
the time some people need braces on their teeth, died Friday of a heart attack
in Washington, D.C. He was 51.

Dr. Hoffman lived in Mandeville and had his practice in Metairie.

He was in Washington to discuss the device with a patent attorney and the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration, which will have to approve it before it can be
sold, said Leslie Capo, a spokeswoman for Louisiana State University Medical
Center.

Dr. Hoffman invented the device, called an onplant, with Dr. Michael S. Block
of the LSU School of Dentistry. It consists of a stainless steel wire to hold
back teeth in place while the front teeth are being moved. The wire, which
generally is anchored to the 6-year molars, is held in place by a temporary
disc surgically slipped into the roof of the mouth.

The onplant, which can withstand 160 pounds of pressure, is designed to
replace the headgear - wires that extend from the mouth to encircle the head -
that some orthodontic patients have had to wear. While the headgear is
designed to be worn 12 hours a day, the onplant's pressure is continuous,
leading its inventors to estimate that it could cut in half the time a patient
would need braces.

Dr. Hoffman, who was born in Battle Creek, Mich., graduated from the
University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls and the University of Iowa College
of Dentistry.

After an internship at Philadelphia Naval Hospital, he received a certificate
in orthodontics from the LSU School of Dentistry in 1976.

He was a clinical associate professor at the dental school and the
orthodontist in the Children's Hospital craniofacial team.

Dr. Hoffman contributed chapters to textbooks and articles to such journals as
The Journal of Dental Research, The American Journal of Orthodontists and The
Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

He was chairman of the legislative subcommittee of the Southern Association of
Orthodontists and helped ensure passage of state legislation to get dental
care for children with cleft lips and palates.

He was a director of the Louisiana Dental Association and a member of the New
Orleans Dental Association, American Dental Association, Southern Association
of Orthodontists, American Association of Orthodontists and College of
Diplomates of the American Board of Orthodontics.

Survivors include his wife, Joan Hoffman; a daughter, Michelle H. Carter of
Orlando, Fla.; a son, Christopher Hoffman of New Orleans; his mother, Alberta
Mattulich of Gulfport, Miss.; and a sister, Lauralee Leiter of Battle Creek.

A funeral will be held Wednesday at 11 a.m. at St. Timothy United Methodist
Church in Mandeville. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m. Burial will be in
Pinecrest Memorial Gardens in Covington.