The Incidence of Enamel Hypoplasia among the Krapina Neandertals

Developmental defects of teeth often appear as a record of metabolic disturbances during growth. One defect in particular, enamel hypoplasia, has been described among recent prehistoric human populations, but few analyses have been made of fossil hominids. This study describes the enamel quality of the dental remains of the Krapina Neandertals. Of the 18 individuals represented by dental arch fragments, 13 showed evidence of one or more teeth with enamel defects described as hypoplasia. This was a high frequency of occurrence when compared to Bronze and Copper Age populations in Central Europe or Woodland and Mississippian populations in North America. The reason for the higher incidence among the Neandertals is not fully explainable given the data available. However, there is a suggestion that fluorosis could be a factor that reduced the expression of enamel hypoplasia in the European populations.     

Brief communication: diachronic investigation of linear enamel hypoplasia in prehistoric skeletal samples from Trentino,Italy

Linear enamel hypoplasia was scored on Neolithic, Copper Age, and Early Bronze Age samples from the Trentino region, Italy, in order to compare the extent of growth disruption in different biocultural subsistence systems (foragers with little agriculture, to agriculturists and agropastoralists). The Early Bronze Age sample shows a higher frequency of enamel defects and an earlier chronological onset than the early Neolithic sample. The higher frequency of defects in the Bronze Age sample could be linked to less diversified nutrition and, because of increased sedentism, a higher risk of disease.     

The Bronze Age burials from Cova Dels Blaus (Vall d′Uixó, Castelló, Spain): An approach to palaeodietary reconstruction through dental pathology, occlusal wear and buccal microwear patterns

This paper reports a palaeodietary investigation of the human remains found in the collective Bronze Age burial cave from Vall d′Uixó (Castelló, Spain). Dental pathology, tooth wear as well as buccal dental microwear were analysed. Percentages of dental pathologies were compared with Chalcolithic and Bronze Age sites from the same territory. Dental caries, ante-mortem tooth loss, periodontal disease and abscess frequencies indicate a diet rich in carbohydrate foods. However, dental calculus percentages and macroscopic wear patterns suggest a diet not exclusively relying on agricultural resources. In addition, buccal dental microwear density and length by orientation recorded on micrographs using a scanning electron microscope showed inter-group differences with regard to carnivorous hunter-gatherers and farming populations related to the amount of abrasives in the diet that could correspond to a different dependence on agricultural resources or food preparation technology.     

Dental pathologies in ten free-ranging chimpanzees from Gombe National Park, Tanzania

The dental remains of ten adult chimpanzees from Gombe National Park, Tanzania, were examined for enamel attrition, caries, abscesses, periodontal disease, and tooth loss. Age was the underlying factor in the development of dental pathology, in that enamel wear was present to some extent in all ten but was uniformly severe only in the three for whom estimated age at death was 39-43 years. In turn, enamel wear appears to have been the direct cause of abscess development, periodontal disease, and tooth loss. Periodontal disease was commonly expressed as alveolar resorption, particularly around the premolars and molars. This involvement was variable in all except the two youngest. Some interesting wear patterns were evident in the form of deep grooves in the upper incisors and dramatic notching of the lower canines. These patterns, and enamel attrition in general, were attributed to normal mastication and to various stripping activities. Only one carious lesion was observed, in a male with an estimated age of 26 years. An accurate assessment of the actual prevalence of caries was obscured by enamel wear and tooth loss in the older individuals.     

Dental paleopathology and agricultural intensification in south Asia: new evidence from Bronze Age Harappa.

Patterns of dental disease among Bronze Age people of the Indus Valley Civilization are currently based on early and incomplete reports by non-specialists. This deficiency precludes accurate diachronic analysis of dental disease and its relationship with increasing agriculturalism in the Indian subcontinent. The objective of this paper is to document prevalence of dental disease at Harappa (2500-2000 B.C.), Punjab Province, Pakistan, comparatively evaluate the Harappan dental pathology profile, and use these data to assess theories regarding the dental health consequences of increasingly intensive agricultural dependence. Pathological conditions of the dentition included in the study are abscesses, ante-mortem tooth loss (AMTL), calculus, caries, hypoplasia, hypercementosis, pulp chamber exposure, and alveolar resorption. The Harappan dentition exhibits a dental pathology profile typical of a population whose subsistence base is agriculture. Dental caries at Harappa are present in 6.8% (n = 751) of the teeth and 43.6% (n = 39) of the more completely preserved dental specimens. The use of a caries correction factor is recommended to permit an estimate of caries induced AMTL in calculating the caries prevalence. All dental lesions are present at higher rates in this Harappan study sample than were reported in previous investigations, and important differences in prevalence of dental disease occur between the genders. Prevalence of dental disease increases in the greater Indus Valley as subsistence becomes more intensive and as food preparation and storage technology becomes more efficient.     

Health and differential survival in prehistoric populations: prenatal dental defects.

Linear hypoplasia of the deciduous teeth is rare in most human populations, but common where nutritional status is poor. Deciduous enamel hypoplasia, hypocalcification, and hypoplasia-related caries are described in Middle and Late Woodland skeletal series from the Lower Illinois Valley. Gross enamel defects that can be referred to pre-natal development are found in 83 of 170 children under six years of age at death. Circular caries secondary to hypoplasia is significantly more common in the Late Woodland series, reflecting the apparent higher cariogenicity of Late Woodland diets. There is a significant association between prenatal dental defects and bony evidence for anemia and infectious disease. Children with enamel defects show relatively higher weaning age mortality than those without. These relationships suggest that at least moderate levels of malnutrition existed in Illinois Woodland populations.     

Paleoepidemiology of a central California prehistoric population from CA-Ala-329: dental disease

Ala-329 is a prehistoric central California site located on the southeastern margin of San Francisco Bay, dating from approximately 500 AD up to pre-European contact. A large earth mound, Ala-329, has yielded many well preserved burials, approximately 300 of which are included in this study. The most common pathological lesions seen in this population are in the dentition. Advanced attrition is pervasive, affecting all individuals with teeth in occlusion for 2 years or more. Deciduous teeth are involved even in very young children and often show severe wear before replacement. In the permanent dentition, all elements are involved by the second decade; in the oldest age category (41+ years), all individuals show severe wear throughout their dentitions. In fact, by the end of the third decade, the majority of individuals have no enamel remaining. Mild periodontal involvement is found in 74% of adults, socket resorption in 53%, and abscesses in 31% of the relevant sample. Interestingly, although dental abscesses are found more than twice as often among males, socket resorption is seen more often among females. Dental caries are seen in only 10 individuals. The high incidence of periodontal remodeling, socket resorption, and dental abscesses is probably a secondary result of severe dental attrition. It is hypothesized that a large quantity of abrasives in the diet is responsible for the extreme degree of attrition, in fact, among the most severe for any population yet described.     

Deciduous enamel defects and caries susceptibility in a prehistoric Ohio population

Clinical studies of the relationship between developmental enamel defects and caries susceptibility have often produced conflicting results. This has been due in part to a failure to distinguish between different types of defects. Studies of this association in prehistoric populations have been rare. The complete deciduous dentitions of 57 subadults from the Libben site, a large Late Woodland cemetery in Ottawa County, Ohio, were selected for analysis. Defects were classified as either hypoplasias (deficiencies in matrix apposition) or hypocalcifications (deficiencies in mineralization) and were graded for severity. The presence or absence of carious lesions was recorded for each tooth. Results indicate a strong positive relationship between hypocalcifications and caries susceptibility. The elevated caries susceptibility of hypocalcified teeth may be related to high levels of magnesium or altered enamel microcrystallite orientation within these teeth. Variations in the frequency of hypocalcifications may partially explain differences in caries rates that have been observed in different prehistoric populations.     

Dento-alveolar lesions and nutritional habits of a Roman Imperial age population (1st–4th c. AD): Quadrella (Molise, Italy)

The study of teeth is very important in archaeoanthropology for reconstruction of the nutritional habits and living conditions of past populations. We have analysed dental lesions of pathological (caries, abscesses and ante mortem tooth loss) and non-pathological origin (calculus), linear enamel hypoplasia and tooth wear in 67 adults from the Roman Imperial age necropolis (1st-4th c. AD) of Quadrella (Molise, Italy). The high frequency of caries (likely giving rise to the abscesses and ante mortem tooth loss), the abundant calculus and the low frequency of heavy wear are probably due to a limited use of hard fibrous foods and a high consumption of carbohydrates. The high frequency of linear enamel hypoplasia suggests metabolic problems during growth. Comparison of these data with those for two coeval Italian necropoleis near Rome (Latium), Isola Sacra and Lucus Feroniae, indicates poorer living conditions in the Quadrella population.     

步氏巨猿的牙齿釉质发育不全

在步氏巨猿后部齿的绝大部分类别中检出有釉质发育不全的标本,患釉质发育不全的个体数高达14.3—17.9％。类似的情况可见之于南非的南方古猿类。步氏巨猿的釉质发育不全很大可能是由于营养上的原因。     

甘肃临潭磨沟墓地人骨的牙齿健康状况

本文通过甘肃临潭磨沟齐家文化墓地出土的262例人骨标本的牙病情况尤其是龋病、牙周病、根尖周病以及牙结石情况的统计与分析,得知磨沟墓地古代居民牙齿疾病的基本情况:1)牙病的罹患率性别差异显著,女性龋病和根尖周病的罹患率高于男性,而在牙周病和牙结石的出现率上则是男性高于女性;2)牙病的罹患率随着年龄增长而增高;3)龋病、牙周病及根尖周病多发于臼齿,牙结石多发于门齿;4)重度磨耗牙齿多发牙周病及根尖周病;5)牙病罹患率不仅受到性别、年龄、牙位以及齿冠磨耗程度的影响,而且与磨沟组古代居民农业种植食物和采集食物并重的食物结构有关。     

Dental enamel hypoplasias and health changes in the Middle Bronze Age - Early Iron Age transition at Pella in Jordan.

Dental enamel hypoplasias are increasingly being used in epidemiological studies as indicators of health within both modern and prehistoric populations. This symptom of growth disruption is used here to examine possible changes in health occurring at the transition between the Bronze Age and Iron Age in Jordan, through examination of enamel hypoplasias in skeletal remains from two tombs at the archaeological site of Pella. A small but not statistically significant difference in the prevalence and frequency of hypoplastic defects was found between the two time periods. These results suggest that the political and economic changes occurring at this time were not sufficiently stressful to cause a dramatic deterioration in health at the onset of the Early Iron Age.     

内蒙古中南部地区青铜—早期铁器时代居民的龋病研究

本文对内蒙古中南部地区青铜—早期铁器时代5个考古地点出土人骨的龋病患病情况做了研究, 在与其他国内材料对比的基础上, 探讨了文化类型与龋病患病率之间的关系。龋病在以农业经济为主的人群中患病率最高, 在农牧兼营的人群中龋病率其次, 在以畜牧业为生的游牧人群中患病率最低。龋病是反映内蒙古地区该时段古代居民经济模式的一个有效指标。     

Dental health and lifestyle in four early mediaeval juvenile populations: Comparisons between urban and rural individuals, and between coastal and inland settlements

Dental stress markers such as enamel hypoplasia and caries are suitable indicators of population health and lifestyle, although they must be recorded and interpreted carefully. To date, they have been predominantly studied in adult samples, whereas juvenile remains are also affected by these lesions. In this study, dental enamel hypoplasia and caries were both evaluated on 613 non-adult individuals from four early mediaeval Moravian and Frankish skeletal series, who had experienced contrasting environments and lifestyles. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between these biological traits and living conditions, and how this is manifested in the juvenile dental remains.Significant differences between populations were found in stress markers, dental lesions and the way these were manifested. Exposure to stressful conditions varies between urban and rural populations and is related to age groups. Although the children under investigation seem to have had different diets, it is difficult to distinguish the biological contribution (different enamel susceptibility) from the lifestyle contribution (different food, environment) in the formation of caries. Moreover, such studies must be interpreted carefully due to the possibility of intra- and inter-observer errors and the subjectivity of the scoring techniques.Nevertheless, this study also demonstrates that results of an investigation of juvenile skeletal remains can be as informative as a study of adults and that juvenile skeletons can be included in large bioarchaeological population studies.     

Morphologic and pathologic findings in teeth and jaws from the middle bronze age (Pitten, Lower Austria)

The detailed examination of the masticating apparatus of 18 skulls from the Middle Bronze Age in Pitten (Lower Austria) revealed numerous pathological findings of the teeth. Most remarkable were frequency and extent of dental abrasions. In addition to it, indications on inflammatory processes in the marginal parodontium were obtained, combined with partly immense formations of concrements on the surfaces of the teeth. The incidence of dental caries was relatively low. Abnormal positions of the teeth and pathological processes concerning the development of dentition as well as the eruption of the wisdom teeth could be observed repeatedly. Conclusions on insufficiences of the oral hygiene in this time follow especially from the concrement findings and from the inflammatory reactions of the marginal parodontium.     

Dental health indicators of hunter-gatherer adaptation and cultural change in Siberia's Cis-Baikal

This investigation of the Cis-Baikal dental record focuses on health and lifestyle reconstruction of the region's mid-Holocene foragers, with particular interest in an apparent fifth millennium BC biocultural hiatus. The four cemetery populations considered represent two distinct biological and cultural groups separated by an apparent 700-year hiatus: the late Mesolithic-early Neolithic Kitoi culture (6800-4900 BC) and the middle Neolithic-early Bronze Age Serovo-Glaskovo cultural complex (4200-1000 BC). Research focuses on the frequency and severity of seven dental health indicators: enamel hypoplasia, caries, alveolar defects, periodontitis, antemortem tooth loss, dental calculus, and dental attrition. Together, these seven indicators provide a basis not only for better understanding mid-Holocene lifeways in the Cis-Baikal but also for independently assessing the relative effectiveness of the different adaptive strategies employed by pre- and posthiatus peoples. Results reveal some discrepancies between the Kitoi and Serovo-Glaskovo, specifically in their relative vulnerability to physiological stress, providing evidence to support previous interpretations of their distinct adaptive regimes (namely the narrower resource base and decreased mobility of the former). Results also suggest that some of the differences observed among the four sites may reflect geographical or environmental factors rather than simply cultural ones. However, despite these distinctions, the overriding trend appears to be one of general continuity, social equality, and good health among all mid-Holocene occupants of the Cis-Baikal, pre- and posthiatus alike.     

Dental paleopathology in a Serbian Medieval population.

Analysis of the pattern of dental disease in two Late Medieval populations from cemeteries excavated at archaeological sites in western Serbia was based on the study of tooth wear, ante-mortem tooth loss, caries, dental enamel hypoplasia, alveolar resorption, abscesses and calculus. The findings reported here show a high prevalence of attrition, alveolar resorption and caries, which suggest an abrasive diet and poor oral hygiene.     

山西陶寺遗址出土人骨的病理和创伤

本文对陶寺文化中晚期部分墓葬和灰坑中出土的人骨的牙齿病理和头骨创伤进行了观察。病理观察项目包括龋齿、牙周病、牙齿釉质发育不全三个指标, 还对稳定同位素15N数据进行了再分析。研究结果指出, 牙齿的龋齿率处于较低水平, 其原因可能有两个方面, 一是调查人群的平均年龄相当低; 二是与陶寺人群的饮食中有一定比例的肉食量有关。这一认识得到陶寺早期人群牙齿磨耗速率的研究和对稳定同位素δ15N数据的再分析的支持。另外, 牙周病的调查结果显示墓葬和灰坑人骨半数以上个体都有牙周病。牙齿釉质发育不全的调查显示, 约三分之一的陶寺人群在其儿童生长发育过程中受到机体代谢压力的影响, 如常患感染性疾病、发烧或营养失调等。灰坑再现的乱骨现象以及头骨片上多见的创缘和裂缝反映出人群之间的暴力色彩, 折射出陶寺社会矛盾的激化和动荡。     

Biocultural implications of oral pathology in an ancient Central California population

Bioarchaeologists have long noted two unusual trends in the dentitions of prehistoric Native Californian populations: high rates of wear and low prevalence of caries. The Central California site of CA‐CCO‐548 offers a unique opportunity to examine the relationship between oral pathology and extreme dental wear in a large (n = 480), ancient (4,300–3,100 BP), and temporally well‐defined population sample. This study specifically examines three interrelated processes of the oral cavity in this population: dental wear, dental caries, and periodontal disease. The results show high levels of dental wear (average of 6.1, Smith system), low frequencies of carious lesions (2.5%), low frequencies of periodontal disease (17.8%), and high frequencies of periapical abscesses (10.7%). The pathological processes examined here have complicated multifactorial etiologies. However, they all share the common primary etiological agents of facultative pathogenic bacteria proliferation in the oral biofilm. Integration of the current etiological explanations for infections of the oral cavity, information from the ethnographic record pertaining to subsistence and activity patterns in Native Californian populations, and statistical analysis of specific disease and wear patterns leads to a novel explanation for the observed pattern of oral pathology in this population sample. Specifically, the introduction of antibacterial compounds through dietary items and non‐alimentary tooth use is suggested as the most likely explanation for the unusually low prevalence of dental caries and periodontal disease. Am J Phys Anthropol 154:171–188, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.