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Congenital Syphilis in the Archaeological Record: Diagnostic Insensitivity of Osseous Lesions
Author(s) -
ROTHSCHILD BRUCE M.,
ROTHSCHILD CHRISTINE
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
international journal of osteoarchaeology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.738
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1099-1212
pISSN - 1047-482X
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1212(199701)7:1<39::aid-oa313>3.0.co;2-j
Subject(s) - pathognomonic , syphilis , periostitis , congenital syphilis , paleopathology , medicine , population , pathology , dermatology , disease , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , virology , environmental health
The paucity of convincing evidence for congenital bone lesions of syphilis in the archaeological record led to study of the human remains from the Buffalo site in West Virginia, dated at 550—650 years BP. The diagnosis of syphilis (venereal) in adults was based on previously validated population criteria for the recognition of syphilis and its distinction from among the other treponemal diseases. Among the 151 juveniles (23.3 per cent of the total series), only one had macroscopic evidence of periosteal disease. The low frequency of recognizable osseous stigmata characteristic of congenital syphilis, combined with the conspicuous absence of pathognomonic dental lesions, make such periosteal lesions insufficiently sensitive criteria for the identification of syphilis in the archaeological record. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.