A new study has revealed the prevalence of dental problems amongst Vikings, including how they cleaned and treated their teeth.
The study examined 3,293 teeth from the skeletal remains of 171 Vikings buried in Varnhem, Sweden, in the 10th and 11th centuries. Of these 171 individuals, 133 had permanent dentition and the remaining 38 had deciduous and mixed dentition.
Conducted by researchers from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, the teeth were clinically examined using a dental probe under a strong light source. Some of the teeth were also X-rayed to confirm the findings.
The researchers were looking for evidence of carious lesions, tooth wear, apical pathology, and other findings of interest. The number of teeth remaining and lost was also recorded – the alveolar bone was examined to determine whether a tooth was lost before or after the individual had died.
The study found that nearly half (49%) of individuals examined had a least one carious lesion. However, all individuals with deciduous or mixed dentition were caries-free. Around 62% of individuals with permanent dentition had at least one carious lesion.
Infection and treatment
In addition, the study found evidence that Vikings used toothpicks to dislodge bits of food. Most interestingly, no carious lesions were found on the teeth with abrasions caused by tooth picking. According to the researchers, this implies that some of the Vikings were keen to keep their teeth clean.
Around 4% of the teeth showed signs of infection, and large carious lesions imply that a number of Vikings would have suffered from tooth pain, as many of the caries were close to the pulp. Bits of food stuck in open carious sites would have also caused discomfort and pain. The study also found evidence that the Vikings filed their teeth to relieve the discomfort caused by infection.
Out of all teeth lost, around 6% were lost before the individual died. The researchers believe that this was likely due to caries and extraction because caries prevalence was high in the remaining teeth.
But the Vikings did not just stop at filing and extractions to relieve pain, as there is evidence that they performed more complex treatment too.
For example, two molars showed evidence that the pulpal chamber had been opened and widened in order to relieve pain. In addition, a central incisor with an apical infection had heavy abrasion. The researchers believe that this is not dissimilar to modern day dental treatments, suggesting that dentistry in the Viking Age was relatively sophisticated.
‘Awful to imagine’
Carolina Bertilsson, a dentist at the University of Gothenburg, is the lead author of the study. Speaking to Popsci on the study’s findings, she said: ‘I think both dental caries and other dental diseases are very relatable.
‘It is awful to imagine the suffering some of these individuals with decay, tooth extractions, and infections must have gone through, without any of the methods we use today in modern dentistry.
‘It makes me appreciate the time I live in, with the possibility to help my patients with local anaesthetics during dental treatment.’
In the future, the research team plans to investigate the bacteria present in the bodies of vikings, and the effect this may have had on their oral health.
You can read the full study here.
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