Fred Flintstone's Dentist

The BBC is reporting that Stone age man used dentist drill. 9,000 year old teeth from a Pakistani graveyard show clear signs of drilling. "Analysis of the teeth shows prehistoric dentists had a go at curing toothache with drills made from flint heads." Apparently it was quite effective at remoting rotting dental tissue, enamel removal and cavity well carving. Apparently they did this for 1,500 years before stopping for some reason (no dental insurance?). As unpleasant as these procedures are now, I can't imagine undergoing them then.