XXXX in the ancient Americas: the skeletal manifestations of treponematoses.

@entity1 @entity7971 @entity627 @entity2953 @entity853 @entity114 @entity166 @entity79 @entity272 @entity85 @entity16157
INTRODUCTION: The effect of rheumatic and @entity166 on skeletal remains provides an important source of information for knowledge of contemporary medicine. Few pathologic conditions have attracted so much interest as treponematoses. One of these, syphilis, was the most feared @entity2953 throughout the civilized world until the introduction of @entity114 in the 20th century. OBJECTIVE: To describe paleopathological and ceramic illustrations of treponematoses in ancient Mexico. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Paleopathological and ceramic material examples from the National Institute of Anthropology and History of Mexico were reviewed. RESULTS: A unique paleopathologic site for @entity16157 comprises the La Candelaria Cave skeletal collection from northern Mexico. The cave was used as a burial site and contained the bones of at least 83 adults and 33 subadults. Fifty-one percent of the recovered skulls possess erosions of the vault consistent with treponematoses. Some of these exhibit the @entity79 with irregular borders typical of caries sicca. In addition, periostosis of the long bones was found in up to 88% of the study sample, including 6 examples of @entity85 . Radiocarbon dating (-C) of a bone retrieved from the cave ranges from 1100 to 1300 A.D. Additionally, a Pre-Hispanic ceramic figurine from the Mexican state of Nayarit depicting a lame @entity1 with multiple nodular @entity272 that suggest gummatous @entity16157 is described. CONCLUSIONS: These ancient specimens reinforce the notion that @entity16157 was present on the American Continent before European penetration of the New World. These very advanced paleopathologic lesions and ceramic representations demonstrate the degree to which these diseases wrought devastation before the antibiotic @entity7971 . In ancient times, treponematoses were true @entity627 that produced profound @entity853 marked by periosteal accretion and @entity79 .
