Asian Journal of Paleopathology Vol.2, 31–34, 2018
Received: January 7, 2018
Accepted: January 27, 2018
DOI: 10.32247/ajp2018.2.5

Case study
The frequency of conical incisors in the Edo period of Japan

Hisashi Fujita, Moe Oguma, Kaori Eguchi, Shiori Fujisawa, Yumiko Oyabu, Kenichi Nomura

Abstract
　The lateral incisors from 178 excavated human skeletal remains from the Edo period, Japan were investigated. Conical lateral incisors accounted for 4.21% of teeth in the both jaws. All of conical teeth were found in maxilla, but no conical teeth were found in the mandible. However, it became clear that there were differences in the frequencies of conical lateral incisors in the area of Tokyo Metropolitan itself. In the future, we will need to elucidate whether or not individuals with conical lateral incisors are patients who have congenital syphilis. As we continue research into the incidence and causes of microdontia in the past time, those results must be compared with the prevalence of syphilis in modern Japan. The subjects in this study were people from the Edo period, ancestors of the present Japanese. Studying historical disease can prove useful to current medicine.