[Comparative studies of caries epidemiology using skulls from the Iron, Slavic, and Middle Ages as well as modern...

The present paper compares the incidence and intensity of caries (DMF caries index) determined on skulls from the Iron, Slavic, and Middle Ages with corresponding results obtained for a modern civilized population. More specifically, the results reported in this paper were obtained from clinical and roentgenological examinations of 371 skulls from the ages referred to above as well as of 10,340 inhabitants of the city of Rostock. The results indicate a marked increase in cariosity between the Iron Age and the present time. This increase in the incidence and intensity of caries is considered to be due predominantly to the abrasion resulting from the then preparation and composition of food (which contained as much as 3 percent of stone dust), whereby an essential point of predilection for caries is removed.