Preliminary analysis of regional differences in dental pathology of early modern commoners in Japan

• Published in: Anthropological Science Vol. 118; no. 1; pp. 1 - 8
• Main Authors: OYAMADA, JOICHI, IGAWA, KAZUNARI, MANABE, YOSHITAKA, KATO, KATSUTOMO, MATSUSHITA, TAKAYUKI, ROKUTANDA, ATSUSHI, KITAGAWA, YOSHIKAZU
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: Tokyo The Anthropological Society of Nippon 2010; Anthropological Society of Nippon; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: Anthropology; Archaeology; attrition; caries; dental pathology; early modern period; Forensic odontology; hypoplasia
• ISSN: 0918-7960; 1348-8570
• DOI: 10.1537/ase.090217

The family register system used by the Tokugawa shogunate limited the ability of commoners to move freely from one location to another. It is thought that such restrictions on movement resulted in regional differences in lifestyle, including diet, arising from regional environmental differences. It is also likely that regional differences in lifestyle resulted in regional differences in health status, including oral health. In the present study, we examined differences in the dental pathology of commoners from two early modern settlements in Japan—the Kyoumachi site in Kokura, Fukuoka Prefecture and the Miwanoyama site in Nagareyama, Chiba Prefecture—as a preliminary analysis of regional differences in the dental pathology of early modern Japanese. We found that the prevalence of root caries and antemortem tooth loss (AMTL) were significantly higher in Miwanoyama commoners than in Kyoumachi commoners. In addition, the prevalence of severe enamel hypoplasia (EHP) in Miwanoyama commoners was significantly higher than that in Kyoumachi commoners, and the dental attrition of the Miwanoyama commoners was more severe than that of the Kyoumachi commoners. The present results therefore reveal considerable differences in dental pathology between commoners who lived in different areas. The high prevalence of root caries and AMTL in Miwanoyama suggests that periodontal disease spread among the commoners at this site, and the high prevalence of severe EHP and dental attrition in Miwanoyama suggests that the dietary status of the Miwanoyama commoners was inferior to that of the Kyoumachi commoners. We conclude that pathological differences in oral health status between the Miwanoyama and Kyoumachi commoners was most likely influenced by differences in lifestyle, including diet, arising from regional environmental differences.