Paleopathological analysis of teeth and jaws obtained from kelenderis excavations [Kelenderïs halkinin dïş ve çene paleopatolojïlerï]

As teeth and surrounding tissues have a different biological structure and anatomy, there is no doubt that they are more reliable and available than other parts of a skeleton. Teeth are the easiest caries and wearing organisms although they are more resistant than other parts of the body. Pathological situations as dental caries, tooth wear, abscess, tartar and periodontal diseases deliver more information such as the eating habits and the general health status of the population than other parts of the skeleton. There is no doubt that there is rich material dealing with the odontological findings in the Mediterranean region because of the fact that the sites here hosted many civilizations throughout history. Kelenderis is one of these ancient sites. Food production, consumption and the economy in Kelenderis give us information on the dental health which is one of the major factors, directly affecting the quality of life and welfare of the individual .719 Permanent teeth of 113 individual pieces were examined in Kelenderis. Periodontal diseases have been the most common exposured ones of the community. This lesion is observed in 78.94% of the individuals. 37.94% ante mortem teeth lose, 25.66% hypoplasia, 21.89% tartar, 10.32% dental caries and 3.37% apse are observed respectively. These rates show us the high amout of health problems among the people of Kelenderis. In addition, eating habits and lifestyle of the population were different from the ones of other ancient Anatolian people. While rates indicate significant information including the nutrition habits and the general health situation of the society, tooth wears reveal the comprehensive results regarding the individual's age, diet and cultural habits. Oral and dental health is one of the indicators of a good diet. The probability of occurrence of dental caries is highly due to poor nutrition at communities having poor socioeconomic status. The political and economic fluctuations in the Mediterranean region adversely affected eating habits and lifestyles of the Kelenderis population. Moreover, physiological stress, unbalanced and irregular eating, fever, and epidemic diseases had rather adverse effects on children and infants in Kelenderis. In this case, it appears that hypoplasia rates are indicators of systematic and traumatic diseases. It is certain that jaw and tooth diseases among the people of Kelenderis have been one of the biggest health problems