Pathology of deciduous teeth in the samurai and commoner children of early modern Japan

Bibliographic Data

ID6135934
AuthorsJoichi Oyamada (Nagasaki University), Kazunari Igawa (0000-0002-9304-4875, Nagasaki University), Yoshikazu Kitagawa (Nagasaki University), Yoshitaka Manabe (0000-0001-9902-6283, Nagasaki University), Katsutomo Kato (Nagasaki University), Takayuki Matsushita (Doigahama Anthropological Museum), Atsushi Rokutanda (Nagasaki University)
Year2008
Volume116
Issue1
Pages9-15
Publication date2008-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAnthropological Science (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0918-7960 • E-ISSN: 1348-8570
PublisherAnthropological Society of Nippon (PUBLISHER • JP)
DOI10.1537/ase.070411
OpenAlexW2038043026
LanguageEN
Citations received11
References cited11

The strict class system in place during the Edo (early modern) period in Japan is thought to have encompassed customs that differed between the samurai (ruling class) and commoners. This study found that in samurai children, deciduous caries occurred only in maxillary incisors at 0.5–2 years of age and did not occur in the mandibular incisors and canines at 3–5 years of age. Conversely, in commoner children, deciduous caries occurred in all maxillary teeth and mandibular molars at 0.5–2 years of age and in all maxillary and mandibular teeth at 3–5 years of age. In commoner children, deciduous caries was seen in tooth types that have a low incidence of deciduous caries in modern Japanese. The present results show that deciduous carious lesions appear earlier and more frequently in the commoner children compared to the samurai children, probably because of differences in lifestyle between the two groups. There was no significant difference in the incidence of enamel hypoplasia in the deciduous dentition between samurai and commoner children, suggesting that the two classes had broadly comparable nutrition. In our previous study using the same skeletal series, similar results between samurai and commoners were found with respect to caries and enamel hypoplasia prevalence of the permanent dentition. Many of the samurai adults had slick polished teeth, which we believe were caused by regular brushing of the teeth in the samurai class. Such a custom might have functioned to prevent dental caries not only in the permanent dentition, but also in the deciduous dentition. Thus, oral hygiene practices in the samurai class are thought to have functioned to prevent dental caries not only in adults but also in children

Archaeology · Biology · Botany · Commoner · Deciduous · Deciduous dentition · Deciduous teeth · Dentition · Enamel paint · Geography · Hypoplasia · Incidence (geometry · Molar · Bone and Dental Protein Studies · Cleft Lip and Palate Research · Dentistry · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies · Medicine · Anatomy

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