Dental Caries in 104 Skulls about 2,200 Years Ago from the Site of the Emperor Qinshihuang’s Mausoleum in China

Background: Dental caries appears long time ago and attracts great attention in the paleopathological research all over the world. However, few reports presented the status of dental caries in Chinese ancient people. Aim: To describe the prevalence of dental caries in 104 skulls about 2,200 years ago. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed using 104 skulls which were excavated from the archaeological sites of Emperor QinShihuang’s Mausoleum and Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses. The degree of caries lesions was identified and the distribution of tooth cavity was recorded and all the data were statistically analyzed using SPSS15.0 for Windows. Results: Dental caries was common before 2,200 years and the prevalence of dental caries increased with age. The position of dental caries in the skeletal remains was significantly different and the sequence of prevalence of dental caries was M2 > M3 > M1 > P2 > P1 > I1 > I2 > C. The interproximal lesions were identified as the most common type and the severity of every caries lesions was not the same in every skull. Conclusion: This investigation drew a picture of the dental caries of Chinese males living around 2,200 years ago, which will be beneficial to understanding the people’s working and living conditions at that time.