Tooth wear as an indicator of acculturation process in remote Amazonian populations.

Riverine populations are typical of the Amazon region that depend on nature for subsistence. These people are considered an intermediate population between the urban and indigenous, the original Amazon habitants. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the relationship between tooth wear and age in a remote riverine population from the Amazon, located by the Tucumanduba River (n = 94), and to compare them to previous findings obtained from semi-isolated indigenous (n = 223) and urban populations (n = 40) from the Amazon region, which were examined using the same methodology.

Relationship of tooth wear to chronological age among indigenous Amazon populations.

In indigenous populations, age can be estimated based on family structure and physical examination. However, the accuracy of such methods is questionable. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate occlusal tooth wear related to estimated age in the remote indigenous populations of the Xingu River, Amazon.