Measuring incremental line width and appearance in the tooth cementum of recent and archaeological human teeth to identify irregularities: First insights using a standardized protocol

ConclusionsIrregular width and appearance in ILs were identified successfully with within-section reproducibility. The moderate reproducibility across sections needs to be addressed in further studies by more systematic sampling of sections.SignificanceThe proposed protocol identifies irregularities in a reproducible manner and may suggest that irregular ILs could be used in paleopathology to identify pregnancies and diseases.LimitationsThe correlation between the identified irregular ILs and known pregnancies has not been assessed as part of this study.Suggestions for further researchThe identified irregular ILs need to be validated by correlating them with known life history data.

Source: International Journal of Paleopathology - September 22, 2019 Category: Pathology Source Type: research