Osteosclerotic disease and bone cyst in a prehispanic burial from Las Cañadas del Teide (Tenerife, Canary Islands).

Skeletal remains of two prehispanic male adult individuals (antiquity ≈ 550 BP) recovered from a burial cave located in Montaña Blanca (Las Cañadas del Teide) at an altitude of 2450 m above sea level, in the highlands of Tenerife (Canary Islands) showed some unusual features. Femora and tibiae of both individuals showed increased bone density, with irregular thickening of the midshaft diaphyses. One individual showed a cystic lesion in the distal third of the left femoral diaphysis, surrounded by a subtle sclerotic reaction of the spongiosa and a thin cortex that was partially fractured. Periosteal thickening was present, but not around the cystic lesion. A thoracic vertebra with rachischisis was also recovered. The bone density of vertebrae and iliac bones were normal, and one recovered jaw was also normal. The tibiae of one individual showed an abnormal location of the foramen nutritium. Hypoplasia of the lesser trochanter and an abnormally thin left femoral neck were also observed. It is possible that both individuals were affected by diaphyseal dysplasia (possibly Camurati Engelmann or Ribbing disease). One of them also showed a lesion compatible with a unicameral bone cyst. The alternative possibility of a Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber disease, with a bone aneurysmal cyst, also exists.

A Prehispanic infant from Tenerife with diffuse microporotic lesions.

We describe diffuse microporotic lesions observed in most of the scattered skeletal remains belonging to a ≈ 6 months-old female (genetic sexing) prehispanic (antiquity ≈ 600 years BP) individual recovered from a small recess of a basaltic burial cave in the highlands (2300 m above sea level) of Tenerife. Although sphenoid wings were lacking, microporotic lesions were present in several bones, especially in the hard palate, basilar part of the occipital bone, outer aspect of the maxilla, and proximal half of the right humerus, accompanied by a subtle periosteal reaction. Although non-specific, bone lesions may be compatible with scurvy, possibly in the context of malnutrition, that probably also affected the mother, given the young age of the infant and her dependence on maternal feeding. Pathophysiological connections among iron deficiency, vitamin C deficiency and vitamin D deficiency are discussed. Both observational reports on paleopathological cases of diffuse microporotic lesions as well as experimental studies devoted to discern the relative and combined effects of hypoxia-mediated bone marrow expansion, protein-calorie malnutrition, ascorbate, vitamin D or iron deficiency on such lesions are needed.