Multiple Dental Agenesis with an Impacted Maxillary Canine in an Early Medieval Dog (Canis lupus familiaris) from Wolin, Poland—A Case Study
region exhibited a smooth bony surface without reactive remodeling, periapical radiolucencies, or signs of ante-mortem tooth loss. Differential diagnosis did not support canine agenesis, ante-mortem loss, or taphonomic damage as primary explanations. The findings most strongly support a congenital or very early developmental origin of the observed alterations. The estimated age of the individual (7-10 years) and the absence of secondary pathological changes suggest that these anomalies did not significantly impair masticatory function. Owing to the single-case nature of the material, broader population-level inferences cannot be made. This case underscores the methodological importance of radiographic imaging in archeological dental research and suggests that alveolar absence should not be automatically equated with impaired survival or poor health in this individual.
Authors
- Katarzyna Grocholewicz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1468-4664)
- Aleksandra Gawlikowska-Sroka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2352-9818)
- P. Baranowski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0033-6829)
Institutions
- West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin (PL)
- Pomeranian Medical University (PL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Animals
- Published
- 2026-04-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16081219
- Primary Topic
- dental development and anomalies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00