Dental indicators of stress and reduced age at death in prehistoric Native Americans

Abstract

Considerable evidence supports the hypothesis that developmental enamel defects represent stress-induced growth disruptions. In this investigation, the relationship between different kinds of enamel defects and age at death is examined in the prehistoric Libben population from Ottawa County, Ohio. The sample consisted of the permanent dentitions of 143 individuals. Defects were classified based on the criteria of the Developmental Defects of Enamel (DDE) Index. The multifactorial age at death determinations of Lovejoy and coworkers (1977) were used in this analysis. Results reveal a significantly lower mean age at death for individuals with enamel defects vs. individuals with normal teeth. This pattern was clearly present for all defect types examined. No significant differences by sex were detected. The age-at-death distribution for individuals with normal teeth approximated the normal curve. The modal value was reached in the 35-40 year age class. The age-at-death distribution for individuals with enamel defects showed two peaks. The mode occurred in the 15-20 year age class, and the second, lower peak occurred in the 30-35 year age class. The early mortality of individuals with enamel defects may be related to biological damage to the immune system during prenatal or postnatal development.

Man Bac (Terra Australis 33): The Excavation of a Neolithic Site in Northern Vietnam

“…Such a relationship has been suggested for both the Da But and Metal Period samples from Vietnam, as well as other studies globally (e.g. Duray, 1996;Goodman and Armelagos, 1988;Saunders and Keenleyside, 1999). Further support for this correlation can be observed when LEH is looked at by the minimum number of LEH events per individual.…”

“…An assessable tooth is defined as one where less than 50% of approximated crown height has been removed through wear. Only LEH severity categories 1 and 2, following Duray (1996), are presented in this analysis.…”

Demographic and pathological characteristics of the medieval Japanese: new evidence from human skeletons from Kamakura, Japan

“…Goodman and Rose, 1990;Hillson, 1996). These defects are a good indicator of the childhood health status of the ancient human skeletons (Goodman et al, 1980;Duray, 1996;Starling and Stock, 2007;Oyamada et al, 2012). The previous study by Yamamoto (1988) suggested that Edo exhibited the highest frequencies of enamel hypoplasia among Japanese populations and concluded that the Edo people lived under stressful environments such as population concentration and infectious diseases.…”

Sex differences in linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH) in early modern Japan

“…However, an investigation of sex differences in LEH for a particular period in Japan has not previously been reported. Research in other countries has produced contradictory results: higher prevalence in males (Van Gerven, et al, 1990;Saunders and Keenleyside, 1999;Palubeckaite, et al, 2002), higher prevalence in females (May et al, 1993;Slaus, 2000;King, et al, 2005), and no significant differences between the sexes (Goodman et al, 1980;Lanphear, 1990;Duray, 1996;Malville, 1997;Lovell and Whyte, 1999;Slaus, 2008).…”