Caries dental y salud oral en poblaciones coloniales de Mendoza (Argentina) durante los siglos XVIII-XIX

Abstract

This work studies the presence of dental caries in a sample of adult skeletons recovered from excavations carried out in the colonial temple of San Francisco-La Caridad (18th-19th centuries) in the Foundational Area of Mendoza (Argentina). Frequency, distribution and location of carious lesions in the anterior and posterior dentition of two sub-samples (teeth of primary and secondary burials) are evaluated. Each subsample could correspond to social sectors with different status. The prevalence of caries was similar among social groups, although some differences in the distribution and location of the lesions were observed. These were interpreted in relation to historical, ethnohistorical and archaeological information on diet, food preparation practices, and oral hygiene of the colonial populations from Mendoza, suggesting different lifestyles among the different socioeconomic sectors.