Abstract

RODRIGUEZ-FLOREZ, Carlos David. Bilateral asymmetry of occlusal wear in permanent dentition and its relationship with paleodiet in a Sonso pre-conquest cultural tradition from Colombia. Rev Fac Odontol Univ Antioq [online]. 2009, vol.21, n.1, pp.65-74. ISSN 0121-246X.

INTRODUCTION: diet is a major problem in anthropology. Different points of view such as biometry, ethno botany, and biochemistry join to understand the biocultural processes covering the development of traditions associated with diet. Ancient diet can be analyzed from a dental wear point of view using a morpho-functional perspective since the relationship established between the masticatory system and the food components compromises the progressive loss of enamel and their relationship with the nutrition traditions of a population. METHODS: this article shows the research results on dental wear of 37 individuals from a pre-conquest human population of Sonso cultural tradition from Colombia. The diameters between dentine-enamel junctions (DEJ) and the highest point in each cusp were measured using a conventional caliper. Student´s t Test for distribution of samples was used to compare bilateral asymmetry of tooth wear. RESULTS: the values showed that at least 6 measures have statistically significant differences. CONCLUSIONS: the samples analyzed here showed a tendency of occlusal wear on the right side of both upper and lower arches, mesial cusps wear mostly in the posterior teeth rather than anterior teeth, lingual cusps of first and second lower molars presented more wear than buccal cusps, metaconido of first and second lower molars is the most affected by the abrasive process of the diet, and premolars behaved as expected regarding functional wear in the helicoidal plane.

Keywords : paleodiet; tooth wear; occlusal wear; bio archaeology; Sonso cultural tradition; Colombia.

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