Dental health of 19th century migrant mineworkers from Kimberley, South Africa

Abstract

Dental health may deteriorate in populations exposed to economic growth as a result of easier access to refined carbohydrates and sugars. Such changes affected migrant labourers working in Kimberley, South Africa, during the late 19th century. A rescue excavation salvaged several skeletons from pauper's graves dating from this period, and the purpose of the study was to assess their dental health to determine whether it concurs with historical statements suggesting that the skeletal population sample being investigated was migrant labourers with limited access to a healthy diet. According to historic sources their diets mainly consisted of ground carbohydrates and occasional meat. The permanent dentition of 79 males and 13 females (majority between 20 and 49 years of age) were examined. Carious lesions were observed in 57% of males and 46.2% of females with an average of 2.7 and 3.8 carious teeth per mouth. The anterior teeth were significantly less affected than the posterior teeth. Periodontal granulomata ('abscesses') were observed in 17.7% of males and 15.4% of females, and periodontal disease affected 40% of those investigated. Antemortem tooth loss (AMTL) was recorded in 29% (N ¼ 27) of the sample with an average of 3.5 teeth lost per mouth.It was concluded that the prevalence of dental caries, periapical granulomata and periodontal disease as well as the pattern of AMTL observed concurs with dietary descriptions for paupers in historical documents. The relatively low prevalence of carious lesions can be ascribed to the limited time migrant labourers spent in Kimberley and the labour restrictions they had to comply with during their stay in the compounds.

Investigation of a bone lesion in a gorgonopsian (Synapsida) from the Permian of Zambia and periosteal reactions in fossil non-mammalian tetrapods

“…Simple periosteal reactions as in subperiosteal haematoma can be secondary to minor trauma or stress, and may show slight periosteal elevation and roughening on macroscopic inspection [29] and a somewhat solid or uninterrupted radiographic appearance [30]. At the histological level, however, ossifying haematomas in mammals are characterized by normal cortical bone associated with the periosteal surface and radiating, fine cancellous bone apposing it [31], underscoring its generally rapid healing response. As in the gorgonopsian specimen described here, Rothschild [29] attributed an elevated periosteal lesion in the tibia of Varanus komodoensis-American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) 74606-to a subperiosteal haematoma.…”

Mine waste

“…The mineworkers were employed on contracts that ranged from 12 to 18 months and were housed in compounds on the mines and under very poor conditions, with poor ventilation, excessive temperatures, polluted water, and poor sanitation facilities (Ndlovu et al, 2016). Diseases such as tuberculosis, pneumonia and scurvy were prevalent (van der Merwe et al, 2010a, 2010b) and large numbers of miners died of silicosis even after short periods of employment (Murray and Rees, 2003).…”

“…Mineworkers’ cemeteries have been reported in several places in South Africa, in both formal and informal cemetery contexts (Chirikure, 2014). Near Kimberley, bones from 145 unmarked graves of migrant mineworkers who died in the period 1897–1900 show the majority were young males of low socioeconomic status and had suffered a high amount of physical trauma and infectious diseases (van der Merwe et al, 2010a). Morphological properties of crania suggest that workers came from a wide range of areas both in South Africa and across sub-Saharan Africa more generally (van der Merwe et al, 2010b).…”

Chinese Indentured Mine Labour and the Dangers Associated with Early 20th Century Deep‐level Mining on the Witwatersrand Gold Mines, South Africa

“…These skeletons represent the only known Chinese indentured labourer sample in South Africa and are representative of a very short, but important, period in the history of the Transvaal gold mines. Several studies have already been conducted on the skeletal remains from diamond miners (L'Abbe et al ., ; Van der Merwe et al ., , , , , ), but much less is known about the health status of people working on the gold mines.…”