Caries experience in the permanent dentition of late mediaeval Scots (1300-1600 a.d.).

Abstract Dental caries prevalence, distribution and site of attack were in broad 4agreement with previous reports for Mediaeval Scots, namely that caries was principally a disease of adult life and showed a different location distribution from that of modern caries. The findings reinforce evidence that caries prevalence in Scotland was lower than in England at that period. It is suggested that reliable estimates of caries prevalence can best be made by noting: (i) individual caries experience, (ii) lesion location by tooth type and area of attack, (iii) the number of carious teeth of each type as a percentage of teeth of that type present.