Meng Yong, Shao Jin-Ling, Jiang Nan, Pan Feng, Gu Yong-Chun, Zhao Zhi-He
Department of Orthodontics, State Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases, West China Stomatology Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, PR China.
Department of Orthodontics, School of Stomatology, The Fourth Military Medical University, 145 West Changle Road, Xi'an 710032, PR China.
Arch Oral Biol. 2014 Feb;59(2):207-16. doi: 10.1016/j.archoralbio.2013.11.012. Epub 2013 Dec 1.
The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence, distribution, and intensity of dental caries in the Iron Age population of northern China in order to increase knowledge about the type of food, dietary habit, and social stratification in this Iron Age people.
The samples analyzed were dental remains of 1548 permanent teeth from 69 male individuals unearthed from the Qin archaeological site of Emperor Qinshihuang's Mausoleum in Lintong (northern China). The sex and the age-at-death of the samples were estimated.
Overall frequency of antemortem tooth loss in the samples was 0.8%. The proportion of individuals with at least one carious tooth was 65.2%, and the frequency of carious lesions was 9.4%, both showing a trend to rise as age increased. Data obtained on dental caries and antemortem tooth loss provided a corrected rate of 9.5% of teeth with caries. The most frequent carious lesions were occlusal lesions (2.6%), followed by interproximal (2.5%) and buccal/lingual lesions (1.0%). Tooth type analysis showed that molars had the highest percentage of caries (18.6%), followed by premolars (4.5%), canines (3.0%), and incisors (3.0%). The total SRCI was 1.6, increasing with age.
These findings indicate that dental caries may be related, at least in part, to the subsistence and diet of this Iron Age population.
本研究旨在评估中国北方铁器时代人群的龋齿患病率、分布情况及严重程度，以增进对该铁器时代人群的食物类型、饮食习惯和社会分层的了解。
分析的样本为从中国北方临潼秦始皇陵秦考古遗址出土的69名男性个体的1548颗恒牙遗骸。估计了样本的性别和死亡年龄。
样本中生前牙齿脱落的总体发生率为0.8%。至少有一颗龋齿的个体比例为65.2%，龋损发生率为9.4%，两者均呈现随年龄增长而上升的趋势。关于龋齿和生前牙齿脱落的数据得出龋齿校正率为9.5%。最常见的龋损是咬合面龋损（2.6%），其次是邻面龋损（2.5%）和颊/舌面龋损（1.0%）。牙齿类型分析表明，磨牙的龋齿百分比最高（18.6%），其次是前磨牙（4.5%）、犬齿（3.0%）和门牙（3.0%）。总龋失补指数为1.6，并随年龄增长而增加。
这些发现表明，龋齿可能至少部分与该铁器时代人群的生存方式和饮食有关。
