The WITS Atlas: A Black Southern African dental atlas for permanent tooth formation and emergence

Esan, Temitope Ayodeji; Schepartz, Lynne A.

doi:10.1002/ajpa.23424

Cited by 21 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 29 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…LEH in the sample were mainly found on the canines, which form between six months and six years of age, indicating metabolic stress occurring during these ages (Goodman & Rose, ; Esan & Schepartz, ). This is consistent with the age of weaning that is known to occur among Khoesan between the ages of two and four (Clayton, Sealy, & Pfeiffer, ; Konner & Worthman, ); a period described as often traumatic, which can lead to caloric deficiency, impact development and increase susceptibility to infection or illness (Konner, ; Lee & DeVore, ; Stinson, ; Truswell & Hansen, ).…”

Section: Health and Stressmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene Khoesan health: a biocultural analysis of cranial pathology and trauma

Gibbon

DAVIES

2020

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A bioarchaeological assessment of human skeletons provides an objective opportunity to study and understand past peoples. Crania were analysed to evaluate health and well‐being of a past Khoesan sample in southern Africa. These data were analysed temporally and spatially (coastal vs inland), and by sex and age. Cranial and dental pathology of 150 adult individuals from the Human Skeletal Collection at the University of Cape Town were assessed. Most individuals were of coastal origin, equally distributed between pre‐ and post‐2000 bp. The sample was nearly equally distributed by sex and consisted primarily of middle‐aged adults (35–50 years at time‐of‐death). Physiological stress was indicated by evidence of nutrient deficiencies and signs of metabolic stress, without significant differences by sex. Cribra orbitalia was more frequent post‐2 000 bp, and linear enamel hypoposlasias were common in those who died at younger ages. Signs of infection were observed in dental tissues as carious lesions, abscess and antemortem tooth loss. Trauma was found in 52% of the sample, 19% was antemortem, with a significant increase post‐2000 bp, 39% were caused perimortem and was significantly higher in women. Significant distributions of pathology indicate an increased stress load from 2000 bp onwards and it was higher among coastal individuals, indicating a critical period with an influx of people migrating into the region causing population displacement, forced internal migration and increased conflict at this time. Despite the seemingly high pathogen load, these individuals were resilient and living through health problems. Across this broad time‐period, the southern African Khoesan lifestyle proves to be adequate to maintain good health and longevity in their social and environmental context.

show abstract

Section: Health and Stressmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene Khoesan health: a biocultural analysis of cranial pathology and trauma

Gibbon

DAVIES

2020

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…26,27 Due to the secular trends of growth resulting from changing diet and other environmental factors, there is need for current data on eruption patterns in Kenya In addition; ethnicity has been found to play a role in the development of third molars. [28][29][30][31] Interpretation of dental age through observation of eruption patterns should be done cautiously following a thorough dental examination since local or exogenous factors such as tooth crowding, early extraction, dental impaction and nutritional status have been found to either delay or hasten tooth eruption. 32 Therefore, a reasonable margin of error should also be provided.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Age Assessment Practices by Dental Practitioners in Selected County Hospitals in Kenya

Kihara¹,

Karanja²,

Wanzala³

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Globally, individuals who do not possess authentic documentation of date of birth may require age assessment before accessing certain rights or facing legal consequences. The determination of age requires customization and a systematic multidisciplinary approach. Hence, professional and human rights organizations have established relevant guidelines. In Kenya, there is lack of a documented local policy on age assessment; nevertheless, the dentists working in public hospitals often receive patients for age assessment. In order to improve on local practices, there is need to investigate current age assessment procedures. Therefore, the objective of this study was to look at the age assessment methods in use currently. Methods The study design was cross-sectional. Data was collected prospectively from new patients who visited eight (8) selected public dental health facilities for age assessment during the study period 2019–2020.Patients were sampled through convenience sampling from randomly selected hospitals. Study variables included gender, estimated age and age assessment methods. The data was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. The statistical significance was tested by Chi-square test. Results The study included 316 patients, 186(58.9%) males and 130(41.1%) females. The average age was 19.42 ± 12.33 years, with a range of 1.5–79 years. There were significantly (Χ2(7) = 39.883, p = 0.000) more children (248,78.5%) than adults (68,21.5%). The age was assessed through examination of presented documents, social history and review of eruption patterns. There was significant use of dental panoramic radiographs (210,66.5%) to review root formation (Χ2(7) = 164.991, p = 0.000). Unspecified tooth maturity tables were used to deduce the dental age. Conclusion Age assessment was mostly indicated for children aged 18 years and below. Both non-medical and medical methods were applied in age assessment though devoid of any structured processes. Observation of eruption patterns and use of dental panoramic images to assess developing teeth were utilized in most patients. The dental age was assessed through the use of unspecified tooth maturity tables. There is need for further training on application and limitations of age estimation methods as well as development of a national protocol so as to ensure equality and provision of evidence based age assessment services.

show abstract

“…However, there is paucity of literature regarding the applicability of the London Atlas to other population groups, e.g., Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2018, Esan and Schepartz [ 13 ] compared the London Atlas with the WITS Atlas, which the aforementioned authors created using the Demirjian method for the SA Black population of Gauteng province in South Africa. Unfortunately, the comparison revealed that the London Atlas was not suitable for age estimation in this population group [ 13 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In 2018, Esan and Schepartz [ 13 ] compared the London Atlas with the WITS Atlas, which the aforementioned authors created using the Demirjian method for the SA Black population of Gauteng province in South Africa. Unfortunately, the comparison revealed that the London Atlas was not suitable for age estimation in this population group [ 13 ]. The study by Esan and Schepartz [ 13 ] compared the developmental stages of the London Atlas to the WITS Atlas; however, they did not directly investigate the applicability of the London Atlas to the South African (SA) population.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Unfortunately, the comparison revealed that the London Atlas was not suitable for age estimation in this population group [ 13 ]. The study by Esan and Schepartz [ 13 ] compared the developmental stages of the London Atlas to the WITS Atlas; however, they did not directly investigate the applicability of the London Atlas to the South African (SA) population. It should be noted that dissimilarities between the London and WITS Atlases may be attributed to the established methodology: the London Atlas is based on the Moorrees Classification Scheme, with a median value used to formulate the atlas, while the WITS Atlas utilized the Demirjian method and was formulated using the modal values of their sample [ 2 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Employing the London Atlas in the Age Estimation of a Select South African Population

2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Dental age estimation in the living and deceased is a fundamental aspect of forensic sciences, civil cases, medico-legal proceedings and clinical dentistry. Accordingly, this study aimed to validate the accuracy and reproducibility of the London Atlas in a select South African sample of KwaZulu-Natal. In this cross-sectional study, 760 digital panoramic radiographs (n = 760) aged between 5.00 and 23.99 years were retrospectively reviewed through consecutive sampling. Each radiograph was assessed and assigned a dental age in accordance with the London Atlas of Human Tooth Development and Eruption by AlQahtani et al. (2010). The London Atlas overestimated age with a mean difference of −0.85 to −1.26 years in the selected South African sample of KwaZulu-Natal. A statistically significant difference between the chronological and estimated dental ages was recorded. Furthermore, the South African Black and Indian males had a higher overestimation of age than their female counterparts, with a mean difference of 0.13 and 0.07 years, respectively. This overestimation was less in the South African Indian population in comparison to the SA Black population. This outcome resulted in the creation of the KZN population- and sex-specific charts and atlases for the two selected cohorts of KwaZulu-Natal. The KZN Atlases were found to be more accurate in the selected sample, with a mean absolute error of 0.57 years and no statistically significant differences between the chronological and estimated dental ages.

show abstract

The WITS Atlas: A Black Southern African dental atlas for permanent tooth formation and emergence

Abstract: Similarities in advancement in tooth formation and emergence across sub-Saharan Africa suggest that the WITS Atlas can be used for those populations as well.

Cited by 21 publications

References 29 publications

Holocene Khoesan health: a biocultural analysis of cranial pathology and trauma

Holocene Khoesan health: a biocultural analysis of cranial pathology and trauma

Age Assessment Practices by Dental Practitioners in Selected County Hospitals in Kenya

Employing the London Atlas in the Age Estimation of a Select South African Population

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About