Alternative Medicine Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Alternative Medicine, including details on complementary medicine, alternative therapies, homeopathy.

On traditional dental extraction: case reports from Dinka and Nuer en route to restoration.

Willis MS, Harris LE, Hergenrader PJ

Department of Anthropology, 928 Oldfather Hall, University of Nebraska Lincoln, Nebraska, 68588-0368, USA. mwillis2@unl.edu

Ritual dental extraction among Sub-Saharan African populations has been practised for centuries, yet little is known about the removal process for any ethnic group. Dinka and Nuer refugees to the US requested replacements for missing anterior teeth removed during childhood. Among 36 Sudanese refugees, 238 individual extractions had been performed. Three retained canine/incisor root fragments; their cases are presented, including memories of the tooth-extraction ritual.

Published 11 February 2008 in Br Dent J, 204(3): 121-4.
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