title: Measurements of tooth wear among Australian aborigines: II. Intrapopulational variation in patterns of dental attrition.
abstract: The possible implications of variations in dental attrition patterns have necessitated a detailed assessment of the types, ranges, and causes of tooth wear. Hear we employ measurements of postcanine occlusal wear facets from a sample population of extant Australian aborigines. A principal components analysis was applied as a tool in determining common types of attritional patterns. It was concluded that the range of intrapopulational variation in dental wear patterns must be attributed to a multiplicity of sources in addition to such commonly cited causes as dietary variations, gender, age, and developmental eruption sequences.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: McKee
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Molnar
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D014072:Tooth Abrasion / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology*