Prevalence of cranial trauma in Eurasian Upper Paleolithic humans.
Am J Phys Anthropol
; 174(2): 268-284, 2021 02.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-33107025
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
This study characterizes patterns of cranial trauma prevalence in a large sample of Upper Paleolithic (UP) fossil specimens (40,000-10,000 BP). MATERIALS ANDMETHODS:
Our sample comprised 234 individual crania (specimens), representing 1,285 cranial bones (skeletal elements), from 101 Eurasian UP sites. We used generalized linear mixed models (GLMMs) to assess trauma prevalence in relation to age-at-death, sex, anatomical distribution, and between pre- and post-Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) samples, while accounting for skeletal preservation.RESULTS:
Models predicted a mean cranial trauma prevalence of 0.07 (95% CI 0.003-0.19) at the level of skeletal elements, and of 0.26 (95% CI 0.08-0.48) at the level of specimens, each when 76-100% complete. Trauma prevalence increased with skeletal preservation. Across specimen and skeletal element datasets, trauma prevalence tended to be higher for males, and was consistently higher in the old age group. We found no time-specific trauma prevalence patterns for the two sexes or age cohorts when comparing samples from before and after the LGM. Samples showed higher trauma prevalence in the vault than in the face, with vault remains being affected predominantly in males.DISCUSSION:
Cranial trauma prevalence in UP humans falls within the variation described for Mesolithic and Neolithic samples. According to our current dataset, UP males and females were exposed to slightly different injury risks and trauma distributions, potentially due to different activities or behaviors, yet both sexes exhibit more trauma among the old. Environmental stressors associated with climatic changes of the LGM are not reflected in cranial trauma prevalence. To analyze trauma in incomplete skeletal remains we propose GLMMs as an informative alternative to crude frequency calculations.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Bases de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Cráneo
/
Traumatismos Craneocerebrales
Tipo de estudio:
Prevalence_studies
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Prognostic_studies
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Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Adolescent
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Adult
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Child
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Female
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Humans
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Male
País/Región como asunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Am J Phys Anthropol
Año:
2021
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Alemania