A historical approach to syphilis infection in Korea

From the end of the 15th century, syphilis spread worldwide, posing a serious threat to public health. Venereal syphilis has been a major research topic, not only in clinical medicine but also in paleopathology, especially because it is a disease of questionable origin and of high prevalence until the discovery of antibiotics. Syphilis in history has been studied extensively in Europe and the Americas, though less so in Asia. In this review, based on extant historical documents and available paleopathological data, we pinpoint the introduction and trace the spread of venereal syphilis in Korea to the end of the 19th century. This review provides fundamental information that will be a great help in future researches on pre-20th century syphilis in Korea.

Horse-riding accidents and injuries in historical records of Joseon Dynasty, Korea.

Only a few osteological reports describe bone injuries thought to have been caused by falls from horses. Nevertheless, anthropological study alone is insufficient for establishing the correlates of such equestrian accidents. We therefore reviewed the records in Seungjeongwon ilgi (Diaries of the Royal Secretariat) and Joseon wangjo silrok (Annals of the Joseon Dynasty) of the Korea's Joseon period (1392-1910 CE). Although the mechanisms of trauma were diverse, the Joseon documents recorded many injuries caused by horse-riding accidents. During 1625-1872 CE, equestrian-related accidents occurred almost every year, overwhelming other causes of trauma. In all horse-riding accidents (n=142), 37.77% of the records offer detailed data about the traumatic mechanism. Injuries occurred most frequently to the extremities (79.58%), which were followed by the trunk (34.5%) and head (4.92%). Although we do not think that this attempt can explain every paleopathological case, our historical review shows that equestrian-related injuries could be considered as one of the major causes for the bone trauma observed among ancient equestrian people.

Detection Trend of Helminth Eggs in the Strata Soil Samples from Ancient Historic Places of Korea.

For several years, we have conducted a series of studies on the patterns of ancient parasitism prevailing in the soil of rural and urban areas of past Kingdom of Korea. Actually, during our survey of paleoparasitology in archaeological sites of Korean peninsula, numerous ancient parasite eggs were discovered in the samples from the city districts of Hansung (Joseon) and Buyeo (Baikje), the palace moat at Gyeongju (Silla), shell-midden site at Bonghwang-dong (Silla to Joseon), and the reservoir found in Hwawangsansung fortress (Silla). By the paleoparasitological studies, with respect to parasitism in the high-density populations of ancient towns and cities, we have managed to catch glimpses of the patterns prevalent therein: a serious parasitic contamination of the soil in ancient urban areas, but not in rural areas of the past. Our historical research also proposed the plausible mechanism of parasite infection very serious indeed among urban populations in Korean history. Although city dwelling doubtless has accrued significant benefits for people and populations with agriculture, it can be equally supposed that living in such highly populated areas might have facilitated the spread of parasite infection.

Long bone fractures identified in the Joseon Dynasty human skeletons of Korea.

Fracture is one of the pathological signs most frequently encountered in archaeologically obtained bones. To expand the paleopathological knowledge on traumatic injuries, it is desirable to secure data on long bone fractures from as wide a geographic and temporal range as possible. We present, for the first time, evidence of long bone fractures in a 16th-18th century Joseon skeletal series (n=96). In this study, we found 3 Colles' fractures of the radius in 2 individual cases. The pattern of fractures was unique. Although previous reports show that the ulna is broken more often than the radius, ulnar fracture associated with fending off a blunt attack was rare in our series (1/7 cases). Transverse fractures, typically caused by intentional violence, were also very rare (1/7 cases) in this study. These results may reflect the relatively tranquil lives of the Joseon people in 16th-18th century Korea. We also found post-fracture complications such as deformations, bone length shortening, and osteomyelitis. The present study would be of interest to medical scientists in related fields because it is one of the few studies conducted on long bone fractures among pre-modern societies in East Asian countries, thus far.

Historical Study on Factors Inducing Soil- Transmitted Helminth Infection among People of Old Seoul City during Joseon Dynasty.

In a series of paleo-parasitological investigations, we have been able to obtain invaluable data on parasite infection patterns prevalent among the Joseon (1392-1910) people in Korea. Thus far we have established that the Joseon people were in fact heavily infected by various species of parasites, though precise patterns and exact statuses of infection in specific town and cities have proved elusive. In the present study, relevant historical documentation was obtained and examined, shedding light on some of the operative socio-cultural factors that might have played a role in inducing a high infection prevalence of Ascaris, a soil-transmitted roundworm, in Joseon society. On this evidentiary basis, we could confirm that the recycling of human feces as fertilizer and the habit of eating raw vegetables were both closely related to infection. These factors were sufficient to maintain the life cycle of Ascaris, there by perpetuating a cycle of infection and reinfection among the Joseon inhabitants. Overall, this study demonstrated the value of close medical-scientist / historian interdisciplinary collaboration infacilitating comprehensive and meaningful paleo-parasitological findings and interpretations.

The pattern of ancient parasite egg contamination in the private residence, alley, ditch and streambed soils of Old Seoul City, the Capital of Joseon Dynasty.

We report on our most recent archaeoparasitological examination of soil samples from 15th to 19th century Old Seoul City in Korea. The sediments were taken from the area in front of the Joseon Dynasty Jongmyo Shrine, which was situated at the juncture of a private residence, alley, side gutter and stream. The soils exhibited signs of serious parasitic contamination suggesting that the Old Seoul City inhabitants were particularly vulnerable to infection. The numbers of parasite eggs in the Joseon strata differed according to the sector: Trichuris and Ascaris eggs were found in the streambed, alley, and side gutter samples; none were discovered in the samples from the private house. We speculated that people tried to make their houses and workplaces clean, though resigned to unavoidably contaminated streets, alleys, and streams. The results of the present study offer, for the first time, a clear and detailed snapshot of contemporary Old Seoul City inhabitants' lives.