An anthropological study of the jaws and teeth belonging to the people in Zonguldak Tios (Byzantine)

With the development of agriculture, ancient people underwent radical changes in their lifestyles, dietary habits, culture and socioeconomic conditions. To shed light on these changes, the data on prehistoric communities have been collected through the skeletal remains from anthropological and archaeological excavations. In this context, teeth are important because they are highly resistant to chemical decay. Research on dental pathologies of ancient people reveals valuable data on the health status, dietary practices and social structures of prehistoric people. This thesis focuses on the paleopathological analyses of the teeth obtained from individuals dated back to the Byzantine period in Tios Ancient City. Tios Ancient City is located in Filyos, a coastal town within Çaycuma District in the northeast of Zonguldak. The material for this study consists of 904 teeth belonging to 54 individuals unearthed from Tios Ancient City. The analysis revealed that the rate of pathologies in the individuals from Tios Ancient City are so: dental caries were found at a rate of 17.5%, abscesses at 3.2%, calculus at 38.23%, hypoplasia at 14.93%, alveolar bone loss at 88.2%, antemortem tooth loss at 9.36%, and wear degree was determined as level three (moderate). All teeth belonging to individuals from Tios Ancient City were statistically examined based on upper and lower jaws, sex, and the order of the teeth. According to this examination, statistically significant differences were identified between jaws concerning dental pathologies such as degrees of dental caries; surfaces affected by caries; calculus; hypoplasia; and degrees of alveolar bone loss were documented. Statistically significant differences observed concerning sex included dental caries, pulp-involving caries, and antemortem tooth loss among various pathologies evaluated across genders. Additionally, statistically significant differences were identified within the order of the teeth included antemortem tooth loss, hypoplasia, tooth wear, calculus and dental caries. With the development of agriculture, ancient people underwent radical changes in their lifestyles, dietary habits, culture and socioeconomic conditions. To shed light on these changes, the data on prehistoric communities have been collected through the skeletal remains from anthropological and archaeological excavations. In this context, teeth are important because they are highly resistant to chemical decay. Research on dental pathologies of ancient people reveals valuable data on the health status, dietary practices and social structures of prehistoric people. This thesis focuses on the paleopathological analyses of the teeth obtained from individuals dated back to the Byzantine period in Tios Ancient City. Tios Ancient City is located in Filyos, a coastal town within Çaycuma District in the northeast of Zonguldak. The material for this study consists of 904 teeth belonging to 54 individuals unearthed from Tios Ancient City. The analysis revealed that the rate of pathologies in the individuals from Tios Ancient City are so: dental caries were found at a rate of 17.5%, abscesses at 3.2%, calculus at 38.23%, hypoplasia at 14.93%, alveolar bone loss at 88.2%, antemortem tooth loss at 9.36%, and wear degree was determined as level three (moderate). All teeth belonging to individuals from Tios Ancient City were statistically examined based on upper and lower jaws, sex, and the order of the teeth. According to this examination, statistically significant differences were identified between jaws concerning dental pathologies such as degrees of dental caries; surfaces affected by caries; calculus; hypoplasia; and degrees of alveolar bone loss were documented. Statistically significant differences observed concerning sex included dental caries, pulp-involving caries, and antemortem tooth loss among various pathologies evaluated across genders. Additionally, statistically significant differences were identified within the order of the teeth included antemortem tooth loss, hypoplasia, tooth wear, calculus and dental caries.