Dental health and disease in ancient Egypt

Abstract

In ancient Egypt the exceptionally dry climate together with the unique burial customs has resulted in the survival of large numbers of well-preserved skeletal and mummified remains. Examinations of these remains together with an analysis of the surviving documentary, archaeological and ethnographic evidence has enabled a detailed picture of the dental health of these ancient people to be revealed, perhaps more so than for any other civilisation in antiquity. In this, the first of two articles, the dental pathological conditions that afflicted the ancient Egyptians is considered. The commonest finding is that of tooth wear, which was often so excessive that it resulted in pulpal exposure. Multiple abscesses were frequently seen, but caries was not a significant problem. Overall the findings indicate that the various pathological conditions and non-pathological abnormalities of teeth evident in dentitions in the twenty-first century were also manifest in ancient Egypt, although the incidences of these conditions varies considerably between the civilisations.