Anatomical variations of maxillary lateral incisors: A comparative analysis of archaeological and modern populations from the Yucatan peninsula.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence of anatomical variants of maxillary lateral incisors in archaeological and modern populations from the Maya region. Both populations were derived from the state of Yucatan, Mexico. The archaeological sample consisted of human remains representing 122 individuals from the ancient Maya archaeological site of Xcambo (AD 250-700). The modern sample consisted of 475 dental models from the municipality of Tahdziú, Yucatan. The anatomical variants evaluated included microdontia, barrel-shaped incisors, and talon cusp. The prevalence of each anatomical variant for each population was calculated and compared (Fisher p < 0.05). The prevalence of anatomical variants was 15.57% (n = 19) in the archaeological sample and 14.11% (n = 67) in the modern one; the difference was not significant (p = 0.666). When compared by specific anatomical variants, a significant (p = 0.013) association was observed for microdontia: 2.45% (n = 3) in the archaeological population and 9.05% (n = 43) in the modern population. Barrel-shaped incisors (p = 0.522) and talon cusp (p = 0.466) did not exhibit significant associations. The overall prevalence of anatomical variants in the maxillary lateral incisors in this region has not changed. The prevalence of microdontia has increased over the last 1500 years, and different microevolutionary processes may be called into question for such change.